Sage of the Hunt
by seagate
Summary: What if things went differently on the night of Naruto's birth? Minato might have put the safety and security of the Village above that of his family, but what if Kushina Uzumaki did not? Where will this new path take Naruto and how will they shape the events to come?
1. Chapter 1

**AN: So this is a bit of a tester chapter really. Recently I have been getting back into writing Naruto fanfics after having worked on my story 'Dead Man Walking'. This comes after I was beginning to lose interest due to a number of reasons. Luckily though I regained my enthusiasm and put aside some time to work on my stories. It was as I was working on them that I reread a story called 'Dawn's Sage' by 'Panory Bro' which I read a year or so ago. (Which by the way is a very entertaining read and something I recommend.)**

 **After reading that I found myself inspired. So after sending the author 'Panory Bro' a message, and seeing his challenge to do your own version of his story. I decided to take him up on the offer, using his story as an influence as I wrote the first chapter for my new story; 'The Sage of the Hunt'. Whether anything comes of this I am not sure, this is more a tester chapter, to get peoples reactions as a sounding board.**

 **At the moment I have a number of ongoing stories and a couple on permanent hiatus, but as always when the mood strikes you sometimes can't resist. That being said I will regularly update the stories I have ongoing, though I really do need to work out a proper schedule or just decide whether to focus only on a select few. I think it is worth some thought.**

 **For this story Naruto will be two years older than he was in canon.**

 **But anyway here is the first chapter of my story and I hope you all like it.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

 **( - )**

 **Chapter 1**

 **( - )**

 **(In the Village Hidden in the Leaves, with Minato Namikaze)**

Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage and leader of the Village Hidden in the Leaves was having a distinctly mixed day. The day had started out fine, just like any other. That was until Kushina Uzumaki, his secretly pregnant wife, had gone into labour, and October tenth had gone from a day like any other to a wonderful day, a day he would never forget, the day he became a father to his precious son, Naruto.

That had been the good part of his day, the bad part. Well the bad part of his day came in the form of some masked Shinobi claiming to be Madara Uchiha, a legendary and supposedly dead Shinobi from the Leaf Village, who had not only found out that Kushina had gone into labour. But had also found the secret, ANBU guarded cave where his son was born, a supposedly safe place where young Naruto could be brought into the world without Minato and Kushina's many enemies finding out.

Somehow this person claiming to be Madara Uchiha had not only gotten past the ANBU guards, all of them elite Shinobi. But he had also killed Minato's predecessor, Hirazun Sarutobi's wife, who was acting as Kushina's midwife. He had then kidnapped his son, a distraction he had used to lure Minato away from the tired and weakened Kushina. As Minato had gone to rescue Naruto, the masked man had taken Kushina, taking advantage of her weakened state he had released the Nine Tailed Demon Fox, a power and deadly entity called a Bijuu which had previous been sealed inside Kushina

With the Nine Tails released, the masked man had then gone on to unleash it in the middle of the Leaf Village, causing untold damage as the Demon Fox rampaged through the village killing and maiming hundreds. The masked man had then turned to managed to escape form Minato, just when the Fourth Hokage had had him too. If Minato lived through today, a feat getting less and less likely considering the despite the masked man having escaped, the Nine Tails still ran amuck, he would forever look upon October the tenth with mixed feelings.

However, Minato had to prioritize. And right now the biggest priority was dealing with the Nine Tails. The beast had so many legends spread about it and its fearsome power, and as far as he could see it lived up to every single one. Killing this kind of beast was beyond even the First Hokage, one of the most legendary and powerful Shinobi to have ever existed, as such it was definitely beyond his own skills. But while Minato might not have the Tailed Beast suppressing Wood Style that the First Hokage had had, he did have something the First didn't. Minato was a master at Sealing. All he had to do was keep the Nine Tails occupied long enough for him to finish his preparations to Seal the beast away.

Minato glanced warily at the nine raging tails which easily tore through anything that got in their way, giving up any hope of holding the Nin Tails down himself. Minato instead bit his thumb and rapidly ran through a number of the hand signs. He jumped above the Nine Tails and slammed his palm down. And in a puff of smoke the great beast was gone.

"Not quite gone yet," Minato reminded himself. Using the Flying Thunder God on two targets of such size was straining even for him. And he still had to get Kushina and… the container for the Nine Tails. "Gamabunta! I need you to hold this thing down while I prepare… the seal!" Minato shouted as he turned to look over at his colossal summon from the Toad Clan, one of the most powerful of the many Summoning Clans there were in existence.

"No promises, I might finish him off before you get back!" Gamabunta the large chief of the Toads replied. As it turned out, the new chief despite standing at close to fifty feet tall, still had a lot of growing to do, mentally. In the scarce minute that Minato was gone the Nine Tails had managed to slice his stomach despite the toad playing a careful defense. Any wounds inflicted by the toad's blade seemed to disappear within seconds. Gamabunta stuck to firing off Water Bullets from a distance after almost having his gut spilled over the forest.

Minato returned, now with a small crying baby and his dying wife. Landing on the ground near to Gamabunta, Minato carefully laid both his son and wife down, before he got to work on setting up and drawing the sealing matrix he would need to stop the Nine Tails.

 **( - )**

 **(With Kushina)**

As Minato got to work, the dying Kushina looked over and made to protest. Knowing as she did that Minato was going to seal the Nine Tails in their son Naruto, making him the new Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tails, an act that would no doubt cost Minato his life and leave Naruto alone. Living in the Village containing within him the monster that had caused so much destruction and death this night, she knew now that things wouldn't end well.

Still though she knew the Nine Tails had to be stopped, just as she knew Minato would forge on regardless. For all she loved the man she knew he would put the wellbeing of the Village over that of himself, Kushina and their son. This is why instead of wasting her strength protesting, she instead began to make her own plans. Drawing on her diminished chakra, an act that caused her unimaginable pain due to the damage the Nine Tails' release had caused. Kushina slowly began to go through her own plan to make sure her son would be safe and protected.

Minato's actions were not just noticed by Gamabunta and Kushina though, the Nine Tails also seemed to realise what into was up to, showing a surprising amount of intelligent for what many thought was just a raging, monstrous beast. Roaring in anger the Nine Tails began to charge towards their position, tearing through buildings and Shinobi as it forged onwards attempting ass it did so to interrupt the sealing.

 **( - )**

 **(With Gamabunta the Leader of the Toad Summons)**

Minato shouted something as he saw the Nine Tails charge, and though it was drowned out by the Nine Tails' fury, Gamabunta could guess what it was he had to do. Just as the Nine Tails neared him, the toad leapt into the air and stabbed the Nine Tails' reaching paw into the ground with his sword. Minato finished whatever he had been doing, a large sealing matrix now being present on the baby Naruto's stomach. What happened next almost made the blood in Gamabunta's veins freeze as he suddenly felt the pressing feeling of death overtake the area. The Nine Tails roared again, not in rage this time, but something more akin to fear or annoyance.

Then the beast shrunk. Gamabunta couldn't find any other way to explain it. The Nine Tails went from a healthy looking, if enormous and nine-tailed, fox to a scrawny, laughable facsimile of the terrifying beast it was. But the Nine Tails was anything but weak, even in its diluted state. Gamabunta's eyes widened as the Nine Tails lunged forward with its claws, threatening to impale what Gamabunta presumed was the new Jinchuuriki. Seeing this Gamabunta threw himself forward, intercepting the Nine Tails as he did so. Gamabunta succeeded in defending his summoner and his family from the Nine Tailed fox, but dong so had caused him to suffer serious damage as one of the Nine Tails' claws nearly tore out his eye, and several of its tails impaled his body. The damage ended up being too much, so much so that Gamabunta knew he would need to return to his summoning realm Mount Myobokuzan in order to recover.

Just before he did return to his summoning realm though, Gamabunta saw another unfamiliar summon appear. He only saw it for an instant, but the summon was huge wolf, with sleek silver fur and piercing amber eyes, upon appearing the summon leapt towards the charging Nine Tailed Fox, its fangs bared as it smashed into the diminished Nine Tails sending it staggering backwards. The feeling of death came on seemingly twice as strong as before, and the Nine Tails roared in absolute fury as it began to be entirely sealed into the newborn baby.

The last thing Gamabunta saw before he returned to his summoning realm was Minato Namikaze, the Yellow Flash, the Fourth Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, fall to the forest floor alongside his wife, Kushina Uzumaki. His summoner dead, Gamabunta returned to, his last image before he disappeared was that of the large silver wolf glancing at him for a moment before it two vanished in a cloud of smoke.

 **( - )**

 **(In the Black Forest, with Akela the Leader of the Wolf Summons)**

Akela silently appeared in the centre of a colossal forest which was filled with trees almost one hundred feet high. This was the Black Forest, the home to the Direwolf Clan, one of the many Summoning Clans in existence. Prowling forward Akela began to make her way deeper into the forest, her amber eyes gleaming in the darkened forest. Her heightened sense picking up the scent and sound of all the prey that scurried around her, not the Akela was interesting in hunting right now. No instead she began to make her way through the huge forest, heading for the spot that the Direwolf Clan called home.

It did not take long for Akela to reach it, a massive clearing in the centre of the forest which was nearly a mile in diameter and was covered with dozens of large rocky outcrops. As she entered the clearing she quickly drew the attention of the rest of her Pack. There were nearly thirty of them in total, a small number when compared with other Summoning Clans. But they made up for it with ferocity and power.

"Akela, what news of our summoner, what news of Kushina?" Fenrir, her mate and a large grey Direwolf that stood at almost twenty feet tall said as he moved forward. Around him the other wolves began to pay attention, some of them shifting around so they were partially sat up as they looked over at their leader curiously.

"Kushina is dead." Akela replied bluntly, not seeing the need to sugarcoat things. Before any of the others could speak she continued on, not giving them the chance. "Something went wrong with the pregnancy and the Nine Tails escaped. Her mate, Minato, gave up his life to save the Village Hidden in the Leaves by sealing the beast inside Kushina's son, Naruto. Kushina was dying when she summoned me, all she asked was that I save her son and raised him like he was my own, away from any of the prejudice he might face as a Jinchuuriki."

"So she has become one with the eternal hunt." Fenrir spoke up his tone soft as he mentioned the afterlife the Direwolves believed in. "It is a shame, she was a strong fighter and a good woman."

"She was, and as such I agreed to her request and brought her son Naruto back with me." Akela replied, shifting slightly as shifted her head back, gently pulling the now sleeping baby Naruto from where he had been previously been nestled safely and comfortably in her fur. Before she lay the sleeping babe gently on the ground in front of her, in full view of the Pack.

Looking down at the sleeping baby, Fenrir's golden eyes narrowed slightly before. "We will raise the boy as Kushina asked, but if he is to be one of the Pack, then he will be treated like any other pup."

"I agree." Akela replied before she closed her eyes, drawing on her chakra as she shifted her form. Her body shifted, becoming more anthropomorphic as she reared up so she was now standing on two legs, her clawed hands at her side as she shrank down from her usual thirty foot tall four legged form, to her nine foot tall two legged form.

Standing at nine foot tall, with sleek silver fur, clawed hands and feet and a lupine head, Akela stretched uncomfortably. This secondary form that Direwolves were capable of taking, was not a form she enjoyed, but it would make dealing with the baby easier, as soon as he grew up though she would revert back. Standing on two legs just felt unnatural to her.

Seeing what Akela did Fenrir nodded his head. "I will leave it to you then, young Naruto can grow up along the other pups his age."

Akela rolled her eyes as she heard that, before she looked down to the sleeping Naruto. Carefully scooping him up, making sure not to cut him with her claws, Akela looked at the boy curiously. She would be interested to see what human boy raised by wolves would be like.

 **( - )**

 **(Four Years Later)**

It had been just over four years since that day and Naruto as all babies do, had grown up. His time in the Black Forest had been for the most part normal, or as normal as it can be for a child being raised by Direwolves….

The wolf summons had done what they could to raise Naruto as one of their own, a member of their pack, trying to honour the dying wish of their previous Summoner, Kushina Uzumaki. But the fact of the matter was that Naruto was different, he was a human and the rest of them were wolves. No matter how hard Akela, the Leader of the Pack and the Sage of the Black Forest tried, Naruto was a human and not a wolf, and so was often treated differently.

It was because of this, despite having been fully accepted and welcomed into the Pack that he still thought and sometimes acted a bit like a lone wolf. Even at the age of four this trait was becoming noticeable as he broke away from those his own age and instead spent his time exploring the forest or picking fights with those bigger than him, be they fellow wolves or the other animals that call the Black Forest home.

This wasn't really surprising considering the fact that wolves grow and mature faster than humans, this included wolf summons despite them having a greater life span than normal humans. This is why even the Summons his own age were now much bigger than him, often making him feel weak and prompting him to get in to fights to prove he was just as strong as the others.

It was not helped by the fact that those few wolves who were around the same age as Naruto were now much more mature in body, if not in mind. This disparity in size often led to the others around his own age mocking Naruto, to which he would respond by throwing himself at them and getting into a fight, ignoring the differences in size and strength. More often than not he lost, but it did succeed in stopping the others from mocking him and the very young boy had begun to earn himself some respect, for his guts if for nothing else.

This was all well and good for now as young wolves often fought, either for dominance or for respect, or just because it was fun and was in their nature. But now the other pups of Naruto's age group were much bigger and stronger than him which meant the chances of someone getting seriously hurt in these fights was growing.

It was for this reason why Akela had told Naruto to meet her here, on the large rock out cropping in the centre of the Black Forest, the clearing the outcropping sat in was large, a couple of miles away from the area the wolves slept in. This clearing was unique in that is was not only the very centre of the Dirwolves Summoning Realm, but it was their most sacred area, and dotted around the clearing were close to a dozen lupine statues. Effigies of wolves who had attempted to harness the might power that was Senjustu, but who had failed. These effigies were left here as a warning to those who decided to walk the path of a Sage.

Letting out a soft sigh as she surveyed the area, Akela knew It was time, in her mind at least, that Naruto learnt to be a summoner of the Direwolves like his mother was before him. Just as it was time that Naruto embrace both his origins and his upbringing so he could learn how to fight, hunt and kill like both a Direwolf and a Shinobi.

"Naruto!" Akela called turning her head to the side, her amber lupine eyes locking on the mop of spiky blonde hair that was Naruto. The boy having been attempting to sneak up on her, unsuccessfully.

"Aww how did you know I was here!" The four year old replied irritably, as he came out from where he was hiding behind the trunk of one of the very large trees in the Black Forest.

A very slight smile spread across Akela's face as she saw the petulant expression on Naruto's face, very much amused that a four year old pup thought that he could sneak up on the one hundred and sixty four year old pack leader.

Focusing in on Naruto as he slowly approached her, dragging his feet as he did so, Akela smiled again. Naruto had grown up to be a strong, sturdy child, with deep, aquamarine blue eyes, spiky yellow hair and three distinct whisker like birthmarks on each of his cheeks. Currently stood at a little less than four feet tall, and was wearing a only a simple white T-shirt with the Uzumaki Swirl on it and a pair of orange shorts, his feet were left bare.

His clothing had been scavenged from an old den that Kushina had taken to storing some of her belongings in, a couple of years ago. These belongings consisted of anything from her Shinobi equipment, to her old Academy work books, to the trinkets she had picked up during her time as a Shinobi. After all what better place to store your excess belongings then in a summoning realm that only you have access to. Not that Akela appreciated Kushina storing her crap in their realm, but the red head was stubborn and Akela had always had a soft spot for her.

"Naruto," Akela began softly, looking down at the little boy as he approached her. The smile still gracing her features, as she saw how small the four year old was, especially when compared to her colossal thirty foot form. "Do you know why I have called you here?"

"Is it because I have been fighting again?" Naruto replied, idly kicking the ground and avoiding looking at his mother figure. Honestly she would not have known if he had been, it appeared that due to Naruto being both an Uzumaki and the Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tails, that he had developed a powerful healing factor, this meant that he rapidly healed form all but the most serious of injuries. That being said though considering his age and the size difference between those he was now fighting, the injuries from such fights might start getting serious, even if they were not meant to be.

"Partly…" Akela began, gaining Naruto's full attention as she did so. His eyes now locked on her cautiously, he had come here expecting the usual reprimand about how he shouldn't fight so much with his brothers and sisters, followed by a lecture on how they were a pack and should act like it.

"The reason I have called you here is because I think it is time you learn how to truly fight, and become the new Summoner of the Direwolves and harness everything that comes with that." Akela continued calmly, seeing a lot of young Kushina in Naruto as she saw the excited grin pass across his face.

Kushina had already been a full grown woman and a fulltime Shinobi when she had first summoned Akela and later became the Direwolves Summoner, she had become pregnant with Naruto only a year later, as such although she had been able to Summon Wolves and Reverse Summon herself to the Black Forest she never had the chance to learn all of their secrets. She had never learnt Senjutsu from Akela, or any of the Direwolves techniques, there had never been the time to fully teach her.

Naruto though was still a child, they had all the time in the world to teach him everything they knew and turn him into both a Shinobi and a wolf that both they and his mother would be proud of.

Akela grinned fiercely to herself at this thought. The Toad Summoning Clan, the Slug Summoning Clan and the Snake Summoning Clan, they were all so arrogant and so high and mighty about their Summoners. Often acting like they were the most powerful Clans of Summons, that arrogance pissed her off, just as it pissed off a lot of the other Summoning Clans. Well she would love to see their faces when they see her Naruto in action, especially considering his colossal chakra reserves, natural talent, and born stubbornness no doubt thanks to both his Uzumaki heritage and his being the Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tails.

"That sounds so cool!" Naruto said excitedly, a grin now prominent on his face at the thought of being taught how to not just fight and hunt, but how to summon other wolves and whatever other secret techniques Akela had up her nonexistent sleeve. No more would the other pups his age call him a hairless runt, now he would be able to stand tall, the strongest of them all. "So when do we start?"

"We will start now, but first off you also need to learn utilize your chakra. Now before you ask," Akela began cutting off the question she could feel coming from Naruto, instead fixing her amber eyes on him, giving him a look that said 'listen don't talk', "Chakra is an energy used by both Shinobi and Summons to do many things, from manipulating the elements to summoning wolves. All living beings produce chakra, including you, me, your brother and sisters and countless others. Now since you contain this chakra in your body, you can only have so much of it at a time, and if you run out, you die. The first thing I'll be teaching you is how to access and control your chakra, then we will move on to how to use it. It'll be hard, but if you're not up for it I could always take you to your mother's old Shinobi Village, the Hidden Leaf Village…"

"No way, I want to learn from you. I want to become as strong as you, Fenrir and the others. I want to become the strongest I can be!" Naruto said fiercely, a burning desire showing in his eyes. This forest was his home, and the wolves were his family, he didn't care about this Village his mother called home, he had never set foot in the place. As far as Naruto concerned this was her true home, just like it was his.

Akela grinned at that, delighted by the passionate desire to grow stronger that she could sense from Naruto. He truly was as much her son as he was Kushina's.

"Good, I hoped you would say that. First off we will start off with meditation, working on your senses and your chakra, and then we will put it to good use by going on a hunt." Akela said as she began to go over the basics Naruto would need if he ever wanted to become a true Sage.

Naruto scowled at the sound of having to mediate, he didn't like sitting still. He wanted to run free, to become one with the wilds, to hunt his prey. Still though, Akela didn't do things for no reason, if she said he needed to 'meditate' then he would meditate. He didn't want to get her pissed off with him, after all if he did she would be the one hunting him.

 **( - )**

 **(Four Years Later)**

"I'm impressed. Getting a grasp on Sage Mode at such a young age is an incredible feat! You've become an awful lot stronger Naruto, more than a match for your brothers and sisters." Akela said her teeth bared as she looked down at Naruto, the eight year old boy standing taller and broader than when he had first started his training. He was still much smaller than his brothers and sisters though, barely coming up to the shoulder of even the smallest adult wolf. His appearance was deceptive though, as hidden within that small body were chakra reserves that would put a full grown Jounin Shinobi to shame, and a skill and ferocity that had at first even taken Akela aback.

Still though the effects of his becoming the Summoner of the Wolves and becoming a Sage had shown. His teeth had begun to sharpen, his sharp pearly white canines now stuck out under his lip, his hair had begun to darken and had become shaggier, his nails had also thickened and sharpened, becoming similar to claws.

"No need to sound so surprised." Naruto replied glibly from where he was lounging on the rock outcropping. Enjoying the compliments Akela was giving him. She had been a harsh and ruthless taskmaster over the years, accepting nothing but his best and often pushing him far beyond his limits. She didn't give out compliment easily.

"Take it for what it is brat, a compliment." Akela replied back in amusement, lowering herself to the ground as she did so, so that she could look Naruto in the eye. "You are the first human that we have ever taught this art to, you're mother Kushina was only able to learn how summon us, already you have surpassed her. That being said you are by no means a master of Senjustu. You're fighting skills although fast and deadly, lack the ferocity, speed and accuracy of a true wolf. You've become strong my son, but there is still much for you to learn about being a Sage."

Naruto scowled as he heard that.

"I thought I was already strong enough to be a Sage. Besides, I've mastered Sage Mode, so there's no way I can't be a Sage." Naruto relied, a scowl on his face as he looked up at Akela. He always found it amusing how the definition of Sage changed depending on Summoning Clan. For the wolves their version of a Sage revolved around not only being one with nature in general, but becoming one with their own lupine nature, and the nature of wolves was distinctly different to the nature of Slugs and Toads.

"Mastered? You have a ways to go before you've 'mastered' Sage Mode Naruto. What kind of enemy would let his opponent sit there and charge up energy for ten minutes? As it is now, your Sage Mode is useless in combat." Akela replied an amused look on her face. "And if you want to become stronger you will need to find a way around that."

"Well what else can I do, huh? You said it yourself, 'One must be absolutely still when gathering Natural Energy, or risk losing control and joining these poor fools who tried and failed.'" Naruto said, gesturing to the surrounding stone statues of Direwolves who had failed their Sage Mode training and paid the price. Not many Direwolves were taught the art, and even fewer ever succeeded. Most learned the basics and left it at that. So far in the Pack only Naruto, Akela and Fenrir could use Sage Mode, and of them only Akela could be called an undisputed master.

"To become a Sage you must become one with nature, that is why I regularly took you on hunts, so that you can become one with your surroundings and with your inner wolf." Akela began to lecture as she looked down at Naruto. "There is a way around your problem, you just have to figure out how to do it."

"Can't you teach me?" Naruto asked with a frown. She had taught him everything else after all, how to fight in hand to hand, how to manipulate the elements, how to wield his chakra and merge it with Natural Energy. She had also sparred against him, pushing him beyond his limits as she made him think outside the box in order to defeat her. Thus far he hadn't even come close. But he had learnt to use weapons, alongside his Sage Mode and claws, and every day he lasted just that little bit longer.

Akela looked at him for a few seconds as she heard this, before she sighed. "I can't teach you because I don't know the answer yet, even if I did though I would want you to work it out on your own. The ability to draw in Natural Energy whilst moving comes naturally to us wolves, and despite you being born a human you grew up a member of the Pack, as such I expect you to learn how to use Sage Mode like a member of the Pack. I started you off by having you mediate so you could feel out the Natural Energy, then I had you merge it with your own body. It is up to you to figure out how you can do this whilst moving."

Naruto frowned as he heard that, concentrating hard as he tried to work out how he could do what Akela wanted him to. He could see her point, and although annoying, he also knew that it would be best if he figured this out on his own.

Closing his eyes Naruto took a deep breath, as he drew on the Natural Energy in the area, merging it with his own chakra. Opening his eyes, Naruto's blue eyes turned amber, his hair turning completely silver, his feet and hands becoming more claw like. In this mode not only were his senses and physical abilities massively heightened, but his skin became as hard as rock, his claws became as sharp as knives and his ability to sense chakra was on a whole other level. Flexing his arms, Naruto reveled in the strength he could now feel flowing through him. He could do it, if Akela and Fenrir could do it, then so could he.

 **( - )**

 **(Four Years Later)**

"So you think you are ready to leave the Black Forest and venture out on your own? Even though you're still a little runt who just recently learned to use Sage Mode efficiently." Fenrir said mockingly, the colossal grey wolf currently standing up on all fours, towering over the twelve year old Naruto. A snarl on his face as his ferocious golden eyes locked on the silver haired boy in front of him.

"More than ready." Naruto replied bluntly, fearlessly meeting Fenrir's gaze as he looked up at the wolf, which stood at almost twenty feet tall, a towering mass of muscle and ferocity and one of the most powerful members of the Pack. "I may have just mastered Sage Mode, but you know that I'm better at it than you. I can't learn any more here, I want to see the world, I want to test myself against the strongest there are. To do that I need to go out on my own, go on my own hunts and form my own Pack."

Four years had passed since he had first learned to absorb Natural Energy and enter Sage Mode. In those four years Naruto had changed a lot, his hair was now permanently silver, and his eyes were a glowing amber colour. His hands and feet had become like claws, the nails harder than steel and able to tear through solid rock. His frame had also bulked up, making him look closer to sixteen than twelve, his growth having been accelerated due to his use of Natural Energy from such a young and the constant fights he engaged in with the other wolves.

Currently he stood at just under five foot ten inches, with broad shoulder and heavily muscled arms and legs. The only thing he was wearing was a simple baggy, black T-shirt and a pair of Shinobi pants. His feet as always remained bare, Naruto seeing no need to wear sandals as they would only get in the way.

Strapped to his back was a simple sword, his mother's old blade, a nameless sword that she had salvaged from the long since destroyed Village Hidden in the Whirlpool the former home of the Uzumaki Clan, in her youth. The blade was a simple four foot long, straight sword, with an unadorned guard and a black leather sheath and handle, the only decoration it held were the Kanji that were finely etched onto the blade, having obviously been put there by the blacksmith when it was forged. Naruto had found the sword among the rest of the crap his mother stored in a small cave in the Black Forest, when he had mentioned it to Akela she had encouraged him to take it. Probably because she wanted him to clear out his other's clutter, but also because she knew he might find a use for it.

"He's right you know Fenrir. He's surpassed you in using the technique, he's probably surpassed me too. Despite that though he's still too inexperienced to be a true 'Sage', to be a true Alpha. Real world experience is the only way to fix that." Akela spoke up softly as she walked forwards, coming to a stop next to her mate Fenrir. As she stood next to Fenrir, Naruto couldn't help but note in amusement that Akela towered over Fenrir, standing nearly ten feet taller than him.

Fenrir grunted at that, shifting his head to look at Akela, before turning back to Naruto. "Well I suppose as long as he summons us whenever he gets in over his head, and doesn't forget that he is a member of our family then it is fine."

An amused look passed across Akela's face as she heard that. For all of Fenrir's apparent ferocity he was a marshmallow at heart. He placed his concern for the Pack above everything else, and since Naruto was a member of their family, well Fenrir had an almost fatherly concern for the boy.

A smirk passed across Naruto's face to as he also understood that Fenrir was only concerned for him. Turning away from the large grey wolf, Naruto instead turned to Akela. "So you have no problem with me leaving."

"Follow your own path Naruto, we will always be here if you want to come back." Akela replied softly as she looked down at Naruto.

"Then that's what I will do." Naruto said with a nod of his head, knowing as he did that the road ahead would be hard. He would no doubt face multiple powerful enemies as he tried to find this way in the world of Shinobi. If he was honest with himself though, he was very much looking forward to it, the Black Forest although a place he considered home, was only so big. He was more than ready to venture out into the real world to test his mettle.

 **( - )**

 **AN: So what do you all think? I decided that instead of using the Toads or a known summon I would make one up. One which is not as overpowered as a dragon summon or something and is not as cliché as kitsunes or some bollocks like that. Instead I decided wolves, partly because I have always found the folk lore surrounding werewolves fascinating. So the Direwolf Clan will be of my own creation, and their Senjutsu will be similar to canon version but with a few differences.**

 **Now the Naruto in this story will have a very distinct personality. He will retain the loyalty to those he considered precious that canon Naruto had, but he is nowhere near as naive or soft. In fact I would go as far to say he is a killer and a battle fanatic. But at the same time though he is not some dark psychopath nor some savage** **. He will be a distinctly neutral character who is disassociated from all Shinobi Villages and so will not hold a particular love or hate for any of them. So this won't be a raging revenge story, nor will it be an 'only hero in the village' story.**

 **He will hold a bit of animosity towards other Summoning Clans. Often deeming himself above them. This Naruto won't be a loner as his main focuses are on not only becoming strong and hunting worthy prey, but on creating his own 'Pack'. I think that he will be quite and interesting character to play around with. The story will at first follow the same basic storyline as 'Dawn's Sage' but as the story progresses it will become rapidly different. I have an idea for how I want the story to end and which pairings may be involved and I think people may be surprised.**

 **So yes other than that I hope people all like the tester chapter and leave a comment or a review. For those interested my next update will either be my Road to Hell story or my Dead Man Walking story depending on how I am feeling. As I said I need to work out a proper schedule.**

 **See you all later.**

 **Seagate.**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Hello all Seagate here with another chapter. I have to say I was surprised and really pleased at the reception this story got and I really appreciate people giving it a chance. So here I am with another chapter, I can only hope you all enjoy it. Because I have to say I am enjoying writing this story so far, as it is so different from my other Naruto story and allows me to play around with the story.**

 **I would like to once again say this is my own version of Panory Bro's story Dawn's Sage, which is a very interesting fic that I recommend.**

 **Other than that I hope you all enjoy the chapter and leave a comment or review at the end as this story is only loosely planned out at this point in time. With only a few basics of where I want it to go and what I would like to happen being sketched out. Which leaves things open to suggestions and advise at the moment.**

 **Well onto the story I hope you enjoy.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**  
 **( - )**

 **(Last Time)**

 _"He's right you know Fenrir. He's surpassed you in using the technique, he's probably surpassed me too. Despite that though he's still too inexperienced to be a true 'Sage', to be a true Alpha. Real world experience is the only way to fix that." Akela spoke up softly as she walked forwards, coming to a stop next to her mate Fenrir. As she stood next to Fenrir, Naruto couldn't help but note in amusement that Akela towered over Fenrir, standing nearly ten feet taller than him._

 _Fenrir grunted at that, shifting his head to look at Akela, before turning back to Naruto. "Well I suppose as long as he summons us whenever he gets in over his head, and doesn't forget that he is a member of our family then it is fine."_

 _An amused look passed across Akela's face as she heard that. For all of Fenrir's apparent ferocity he was a marshmallow at heart. He placed his concern for the Pack above everything else, and since Naruto was a member of their family, well Fenrir had an almost fatherly concern for the boy._

 _A smirk passed across Naruto's face to as he also understood that Fenrir was only concerned for him. Turning away from the large grey wolf, Naruto instead turned to Akela. "So you have no problem with me leaving."_

 _"_ _Follow your own path Naruto, we will always be here if you want to come back." Akela replied softly as she looked down at Naruto._

 _"_ _Then that's what I will do." Naruto said with a nod of his head, knowing as he did that the road ahead would be hard. He would no doubt face multiple powerful enemies as he tried to find this way in the world of Shinobi. If he was honest with himself though, he was very much looking forward to it, the Black Forest although a place he considered home, was only so big. He was more than ready to venture out into the real world to test his mettle._

 **( - )**

 **Chapter 2**

 **( - )**

 **(With Naruto a Year Later)**

Naruto felt that for the most part he had had a pretty decent upbringing, for literally being raised by wolves that is. Akela had instilled in him a moral code of sorts, this moral code for some would be seen as distinctly grey, but for him was basically gospel. He had been taught that the strong survive and the weak die, that there is just as much thrill in the hunt as there is in the kill and that the Pack is the most important thing. Other things like the basic what is right and what is wrong was never really covered. Akela instead left that up to him to decide, stating that most of it was common sense. The only thing she really impressed upon him was the Pack always a came first, and no matter what you should never kill a member of your own Pack.

That being said Akela, despite her ambiguity when it came to morals and ethic, was somewhat of a stickler when it came to the rest of Naruto's upbringing. Knowing as she did that he would one day chose to walk among the humans she had decided to not just teach him how to fight, hunt and kill but the other necessities he would need. She had taught him the basic things he would need to know when travelling through the human world, like numbers and language, manners and etiquette, the basic geography of the Elemental Nations etc. The old Shinobi Academy text books Kushina left in the Black Forest alongside the rest of her crap was very useful for this.

It was because of this knowledge that Naruto had been able to thrive since leaving the Black Forest and coming to the world of man. Shinobi he had found out, did not hold the monopoly on mercenary work like one would expect. Often times their services were highly expensive.

The payment for a C-rank mission alone was more than most families could earn in a year, and the missions only got more expensive as the ranking increased. A single S-rank mission from one of the larger Shinobi Villages like the Hidden Cloud, the Hidden Rock or the Hidden Leaf could impoverish a small nation, depending on the difficulty of the mission and how many Shinobi would need to be sent.

There were other options though, such as going to the smaller Shinobi Villages, like the Hidden Rain, or the Village Hidden in the Waterfalls. The prices these Villages charged for their services were not quite as extortionate, they were still expensive though.

It was because of this reason that the Shinobi Villages didn't have the monopoly many thought on gigs like protection, assassination, espionage and the like. No there were cheaper alternatives for those missions, Missing-nin, Shinobi who abandoned their Villages and were often actively hunted by said Villages, they provided cheaper alternatives, as to did roving mercenary bands and exiled Samurai.

It was in that less than esteemed company that Naruto was able to make a healthy living and somewhat of a name for himself. It had been twelve months since he had first walked into the seedy bar in Clover Town, the Lusty Leopard. It had been the first place he had visited, in the first town he had come across since he was reverse summoned to the human world.

Suffice to say his impression of it had not been great, the building was a ramshackle, two-story wooden building. When he had first entered his heightened senses had almost been overwhelmed by the stench of sweat, stale alcohol and greasy food. Luckily though he had been able to power through, driven on by his curiousity at meeting other humans for the first time.

It had been a disappointing first meeting, a guy sitting at the bar had simply sneered at him and told him to piss off back to kiddie school. Naruto ended up smashing his face into the marked and pitted wooden surface of the bar, breaking the man's teeth and nose and causing him to let out a loud scream of shock and pain. That had gotten Naruto the attention of the entire bar.

A brief brawl later and a half dozen broken bones and lacerations made it clear to the bars clientele that Naruto was not someone you fucked with. After making sure he made that point, he went on to ask for some food, taking the money from one of the half dozen thugs he had beaten down to pay for his meal.

As it turned out, Naruto's first impression was not that uncommon. The bar was known to draw a rougher crowd, as exiled Samurai, mercenaries and Missing-nin often frequented the place. It was because of this, or maybe caused by this, that the bar had somewhat of a bad reputation.

When he had first looked around the bar, Naruto had been surprised to see that against one of the bar's walls there was a large request bored displayed. A request board that held hundreds of paper bounties and requests, posted by government officials, private parties and the like. These requests were often for protection, for hired muscle, or to advertise bounties that had been put on the heads of Shinobi, Missing-nin and other people of interest.

Upon hearing this Naruto had decided to give one of them a go, after all this was apparently how people like Naruto made money. People who excelled in fighting but who didn't want to or weren't allowed to join the Shinobi Villages.

The first mission Naruto had ended up taking was a bounty request, for some failed academy student from the Hidden Cloud Village. The man had apparently been causing trouble in a nearby town, using the paltry skills he learned at a Shinobi Academy to bully, harass and rob people travelling to and from the town. This had ended up interfering with the town's trade, often putting off some of the more squeamish merchants. The town had put in a request for the man to be dealt with, Naruto had accepted it.

From there it had only taken him a about an hour to reach the town and track his target down, this had been made easier by the fact that the man had more chakra than the average person thanks to his Shinobi training. Which for Naruto, who was nowadays constantly in Sage Mode and very much able to sense chakra, made it almost painful easy for him to track down the man.

What followed was the man attempting to intimidate Naruto with a sword when he was confronted, and Naruto ripping the man's throat out with his clawed hand. It had taken Naruto about an hour from accepting the job to bringing his body to a nearby bounty hunting station that was based in the same town as the Lusty Leopard. A two hour job all round that had ended up earning him ten thousand ryo. Naruto had to say that he liked it, though the prey could have been better.

That had been twelve months, and over two hundred confirmed bounties ago.

 **( - )**

Walking forward confidently, a slight smile on his face, Naruto's amber eyes almost glowed as he entered the dimly lit main room of the Lusty Leopard. His entrance did not go unnoticed as a few of the regulars called out greetings to him as he passed. Seeing this Naruto gave them a brief nod in return, despite him not having bothered to remember their names.

Naruto had grown a lot in the last year, he now stood at close to six foot with broader shoulders and more muscled arms. His hair was still shaggy, a grayish silver colour. His eyes had also retained their glowing amber colour, whilst the whisker like birthmarks had become even darker and more pronounced. For the last year he hadn't stopped using Sage Mode once, having become accustomed to constantly absorbing Natural Energy, even when he was asleep.

Over the last year he had also managed to buy and scavenge a new outfit. Consisting of finely made black Shinobi pants, a grey T-shirt and a black knee length coat. His sword was now strapped to his back, the hilt of the blade just poking up over his right shoulder. And as always he continued to refuse to wear shoes, instead walking on his clawed feet, trusting in his all but impenetrable skin to protect him more than a simple leather sandal ever could.

Continuing on Naruto nodded to the barman, Sokka. He was a large thick set man, with no hair on his head and a large black beard, who upon seeing Naruto grunted a bit before sending him a brief nod back. It had been over a month since he had been back at this inn, as he often liked to travel from town to town, he had to admit though he was happy that he was back. Many towns in the different country had a place like the Lusty Leopard in it, or a bounty station, or at least somewhere Naruto could find work.

The Lusty Leopard though, as the first place he had visited since leaving the Black Forest always held a special place in Naruto's heart. This was the reason why he came back every now and then. Plus they had a very good request board. The barman and owner of the bar Sokka, having been a Rock Shinobi once still had a number of friends and contacts that allowed him to stock up on requests and missions. Which Sokka would go on to post on his request board often drawing in people like Naruto who would spend their coin here as a thanks.

Ignoring him for now, Naruto instead approached the request board, looking for an interesting job he could take. Immediately he ignored jobs like hired muscle or protection rackets, those kind of jobs didn't interest him, they were too easy and the pay was shit.

Bounties though, bounty mission they did interest him. A number of the requests posted on the board were pages that had been ripped out of the different Shinobi Villages Bingo Books, little booklets that displayed Shinobi of interest all of whom had a price on their head. Each Village had a slightly different book, which contained brief descriptions of Missing-nin from both their own Village and the other ones and enemy Shinobi of interest from one of the other Shinobi Villages.

These for Naruto were the most interesting bounties. Hunting down and killing Shinobi was far more exciting than killing thugs, business men and the like. Shinobi could at least fight back, or could at least attempt to, and that actually make the hunt fun. So far he had taken close to one hundred and fifty of these requests, most of them low level bounties for D-ranked, C-ranked and B-ranked Shinobi. And so far he had not failed a single one, his heightened senses and his ability to sense chakra allowed him to easily track down the Shinobi, and his use of Sage Mode made killing them even easier.

That being said he did like to play around with them before he ended them, often testing his swordsmanship and taijutsu against the trained Shinobi. So far though not a single Shinobi B-rank or below had managed to put even a scratch on him, it was disappointing but at the same time it was interesting to see how diverse Shinobi skills were and even more fun to prove the power of the Wolf Sage was many times superior.

Scanning the board of requests, Naruto paused slightly as he saw the Bingo Book entry for the S-ranked Missing-nin Itachi Uchiha. Reaching out a clawed hand for the yellowed and crinkled page, Naruto agonized about whether or not to take it. Before with a shake of his head he let go of the page relating to Itachi Uchiha, one of the twenty S-rank Shinobi who had been put in Bingo Books, and whose pages had been torn out and pinned to this board.

For the last few months Naruto had been pondering over whether or not to take one of these bounties, the idea of hunting down an S-rank Shinobi, the best of the best had given Naruto somewhat of a thrill. But reason had always taken hold first, Naruto may be very confident in his abilities, but he was not some maniac, he knew he couldn't just go running off fighting a Shinobi of that caliber, at least not yet.

Especially a Shinobi like Itachi Uchiha, the man was one of the best. Up there with the likes of Sasori of the Red Sand, Orochimaru of the Sanin, Jirayia the Toad Sage, Killer B and many other S-rank Shinobi. These were Shinobi that Naruto would one day hunt, but for now he needed to work his way up, and hone his abilities before he could go about hunt them down. Testing his strength and the strength of the Direwolves against the best of the best.

So far Naruto reckoned he was at the least at the level of a High A-rank Shinobi to a low S-rank Shinobi. His mastery of Sage mode and his taijutsu and kenjutsu skills were proof enough of that, and that was not taking into account the few Sage based ninjutsu he had picked up during his time in the Black Forest. Unfortunately though he did have a few weaknesses, namely genjutsu.

Naruto's chakra was so colossal that it made it all but impossible for him to use genjutsu, even with his finely tuned chakra control he couldn't manage even a simple genjutsu, or at least not one that wouldn't be patently obvious to even a genin. This Naruto deemed was a weakness, he may be able to release himself from a basic genjustu if he was caught up in one, but so far he was unable to cast them. This especially bothered him considering that the best Shinobi like Orochimaru, Itachi and Jiriaya had been able to master all of the Shinobi arts.

Pushing those thoughts away for now, Naruto ignored the S-rank bounties and instead snagged him a nice simple B-rank one instead. This one looked particularly interesting, apparently there has been a band of Shinobi raiding villages and settlements in Rice Country. According to the description the Daimyo of Rice Country had issued a bounty for the group to be hunted down and killed. The group was apparently running amuck, kidnapping people at random, burning anything that got in their way and then fleeing. Suffice to say it had Naruto's interest.

"I'm taking this one." Naruto said bluntly as he ripped the request off the board and shoved it in his coat pocket. Getting a grunt of affirmation from Sokka as he strode past the bar and out of the inn. The two of them had a special connection, over the twelve months they had known each other Naruto hadn't heard the man speak once for Naruto, Sokka was one of the most likeable humans he had come across.

 **( - )**

 **(A few days later in Rice Country)**

Rushing through the trees, Naruto's eyes narrowed as he saw the retreating backs of his quarry. It had been a couple of days since he had taken the job and his targets had been busy. In that time they had managed to hit a further two villages, bringing the total count up to nine that were known. Naruto had arrived too late to stop the attack on the first settlement, by the time he had arrived a number of buildings had already burnt down, twenty-seven people were dead and a further six had been taken captive.

The attack had ended two hours before Naruto had arrived much to his irritation. Luckily though he had managed to pick up their trail. A trail he had followed to yet another burning settlement, little more than a hunting lodge really. Which just like their other targets was small, secluded and sparsely populated, it probably boasted a population of barely twenty.

Naruto had arrived just as his targets were fleeing, the ground around the settlement were littered with corpses, and from what he could sense there was not a single person left alive in the settlement, it had been a complete massacre. Upon noting that Naruto had begun his pursuit, easily tearing through the dense woodland, his senses flaring as he tracked down the nine Shinobi he was hunting, or at last he assumed it was nine judging by their chakra levels. As well as the eight civilian captives they had seemed to have taken.

Naruto was silent as he stalked his prey, not making a sound as he ran through the trees, doggedly following the enemy Shinobi. As he pursued them he made sure to keep his distance, not wanting to alert them to his presence in case they had a Sensory Shinobi among them who might be able to forewarn them that he was on their tail. He also wanted to track them back to their base of their hideout, after all the bounty and not specified how many there were, it had only said five thousand ryo a head and Naruto was feeling hungry.

 **( - )**

 **(An hour or so later)**

Night had drawn in as Naruto moved swiftly and silently through the trees, beginning to quicken his pace now that his targets had stopped moving. Already he could hear voices coming from just in front of him and could see the flickering light of a fire, the golden light being just visible through the dense forest.

It seemed these rogue Shinobi were very confident, either in their abilities or in the fact that they were not being pursued. After all why else would they have an open fire like this, or talk as loudly as they were doing.

Coming to a stop just before his targets encampment, Naruto paused. Spreading out his senses as he did so. So far he could sense thirteen people in the camp ahead who had more chakra than an average civilian, making them the Shinobi he was after. None of them were that impressive really, ranging from around high genin levels to high Chunin levels, or at least that is what Naruto estimated from his experience. But what they lacked in raw power they made up for in numbers.

On top of the Shinobi he had identified, he could also sense twenty-three civilians also in the encampment, easily identified by how little chakra they had. Now these could be common bandits, but somehow Naruto doubted that. Shinobi often thought themselves above common thugs and cut throats, so it was unlikely they would work with them. Plus the request had stated that they were kidnapping civilians, and Naruto had seen evidence himself of this.

No, in Naruto's mind it was more likely that they were captives, taken from the raided villages.

With that assessment made Naruto began to prowl forwards again, his amber eyes glowing faintly in the darkness as he saw the silhouette of a figure at the edge of the camp, it seems they were not arrogant enough not to set a watch. Not that that would do them any good.

Naruto didn't pause for second as he leapt forward, his clawed hand outstretched. The watchman didn't even have a chance to scream as Naruto ripped his throat out and then dragged him into the dark woodland, not making a sound as he ghosted his first victim.

Naruto paused as he dropped the dead man onto the ground, hiding him behind a bush for now as he instead focused on the camp. Making sure his actions had gone unnoticed, which judging by how the loud conversation went on undisturbed, seemed to be the case.

Shifting forwards once more, Naruto grinned as he closed in on his prey. As he drew closer to the camp, he soon began to make it out. The camp was made up of three mottled green coloured tents, a large campfire which had a number of pots bubbling away just above it, and finally a large prison wagon just to the side. The wagon was a large wooden frame with four iron studded wheels. Attached to the top of the wagon there was an iron cage, within which Naruto could make out a number of huddled shapes. Just to the side of the wagon Naruto could also see two horses tied to a nearby tree, both of them grazing at the edge of the camp site.

Turning away from the prison wagon for now. Naruto instead focused on the centre of the camp, around the fire Naruto could make out the shapes of ten people sitting around, all of them Shinobi. Shifting his gaze back to the edge of the campsite, Naruto was soon able to find another Shinobi who was standing guard at the back of the prison wagon. The final one though, Naruto frowned as he spread his senses out. The final one seemed to be in the prison wagon itself….

Naruto frowned as he sensed this, trying to work out why someone trained to use chakra would be kept in the cage along with the others. The first thing that came to mind was a trap, someone placed there to kill anyone who attempted to free the prisoners. He soon dismissed that theory though, a plan like that would require intelligence and caution, which was something this group of rogue Shinobi seemed to lack.

Ignoring that problem for now, Naruto instead looked back to the main group, slowly moving around the edge of the camp as he listened in on the conversation they seemed to be having.

 **( - )**

 **(In the Camp)**

"I'm telling you right now! No one is allowed to touch the prisoners! The Master will use you in one of his experiments if he finds you have interfere with one of his test subjects!" One of the men said loudly, his tone laced with irritation. The man who spoke was tall and skinny, with short black hair and a gaunt pale face. His clothing like his fellow Shinobi seemed to be a mottled greyish black colour, and like them he seemed to be armed with standard Shinobi equipment, including a sword, kunai and shuriken.

"Oh come on, how will he notice!" Another one of the men answered, this one was shorter than the first, with a squat, stocky body, tanned skin and a scrubby black beard. "I mean we got some real pretty ones this time! I am sure the Master won't begrudge us a bit of fun!"

"Trust me if when I say this, he will know and he will make you suffer. I am saying this for your own good, don't interfere with the Master's test subjects." The first man replied, a note of fear entering in his voice as he spoke about this, 'Master' of his.

"This bullshit!" The second man snarled. "You wouldn't allow us to stick around and have a bit of fun in any of those villages we attacked, and now you're not even letting us enjoy the spoils of war!"

"The Master told us not to stick around, we were to go in and get him the best candidates for his experiments we could find and then we were to get out." The first man said his voice hard and uncompromising.

"You're worse than that fucking Kabuto shit, tell me how many ties has your 'Master' blasted you in the arse?!" The second man sneered, those around him jeering in agreement as they watched the ongoing argument in amusement. This seemed to encourage the squat, bearded man, as he sent the taller man a nasty look. "So what I say is you fuck off and get out of our way! Do that and I might let you have a go on that fine piece of arse we picked up in the logger's camp, after I've had my go of course!"

The others seemed to jeer and cheer louder as they heard this, several of them rising to their feet.

The first man glared darkly at that before he stood up. With a rasp of steal he then drew his sword, a simple katana, which he held confidently in front of him. His gaze not faltering as he glared back at the squat, bearded man. "We were given orders! And if I have to kill you to make sure those orders are obeyed… I will!"

"You're feeling confident are you?" The shorter man looked taken aback at that, for a moment. Before with a nasty smirk he grabbed a hold of a nearby woodcutting axe he had stolen form the logger's camp, easily hefting it in his hands as he turned to face the taller man. The rest of the Shinobi also beginning to rise to their feet. "You really think you can take me Kaiza?!"

The now named Kaiza didn't answer as he simply gripped his sword tighter, the long blade held at the ready. Nor would he ever get a chance to, as at that moment the watching Naruto decided to take advantage of the distraction their argument caused and attack.

 **( - )**

 **(With Naruto)**

Naruto didn't give any warning as he leapt exploded from the tree line rapidly closing in on the group of rogue Shinobi, his body was little more than a blur as his Sage Mode enhanced muscles propelled him across the leafy ground faster than a high level Jounin. Before any of the raiders knew what was happening Naruto was among them his clawed hand tearing through the torso of Kaiza, ripping a large chunk out of his chest and killing him in an instant.

The others barely had a chance to voice their surprise at their 'leaders' death before Naruto was among them, his right hand lashing out and tearing the short, squat man's throat out, causing him to collapse backwards, his hands futilely scrabbling at the gaping, bloody wound in his throat. A meaningless act as the wound was too deep and grievous, his life blood spraying out of it and soaking into the ground.

Lashing out with his other hand Naruto sheered through another man, disemboweling him with his claws, before he lashed out with his other hand ripping yet another man's throat out. Twisting around Naruto delivered a kick to a fifth man's chest, the strength behind the kick sent the man hurtling back several metres, his chest a shattered ruin and his organs completely pulverized.

"What the fuck!" One of the other men shouted as he drew his sword and lashed out at Naruto, his strike desperate and uncoordinated. The man's eyes wide with fear and terror, as he blindly attacked the silver haired man who had just slaughtered five of his fellows in barely thirty seconds, not even aiming as felt a primal terror rising up in him

Naruto saw the sword blade descending towards him, easily slapping the blade away before spearing his hand forward his hand as deadly as any sword. With barely any resistance his clawed hand tore through his opponent's chest before closing around his heart. Then in a grabbing motion Naruto yanked the still beating heart out of the man's chest.

Twisting Naruto grabbed the sword from the now dead man's hand, time seeming to slow as he turned to face the prison wagon, his amber eyes fixed on the guard who looked to be caught between fleeing and attacking. Naruto didn't giving him a chance as he hurled the sword at the man. The sheer force behind the throw caught the indecisive Shinobi off guard, as the blade pierced straight through his torso and pinned him to a nearby tree, the blade sinking down to the hilt.

Naruto ignore that though, already aware the man was dead as he turned and threw the chunk of meat that had once been another human's heart at one of the other Shinobi. An act that made the Shinobi flinch backwards, and which allowed Naruto to close in on him, his claws already extended as they ripped through the Shinobi's skin, muscle and bones.

 **( - )**

Seeing the latest of their fellows die the three remaining Shinobi, decided unanimously to retreat. Turning tail the three Shinobi fled the encampment, channeling chakra to their muscles as they attempted to get as far away from the rampaging silver haired monster as they could. One of the braver ones attempted to stall Naruto, as he turned on the spot and released a fire ball at the Sage, rapidly going through a set of hand signs before blowing a medium sized fireball out of his cupped hands.

 **( - )**

 **(With Naruto)**

Naruto grinned as he saw three of his prey attempting to flee, crouching low Naruto sprang forward. Crossing the encampment in seconds Naruto didn't pause as he saw one of the Shinobi turn a launch a fireball at him. With a savage grin Naruto ran through the fire, not even feeling a flicker of pain or heat as the fire licked futilely at his Sage enhanced skin.

Exploding out of the other side of the fireball, Naruto only grinned wider as he saw the look of horror on his attacker's face. It was a look that would be forever frozen on his face as Naruto lashed out with his hand a moment later and ripped his head off.

Landing easily on the ground Naruto then sprinted after the other two, catching up with the first one ten metres out from the camp. The man didn't stand a chance as Naruto's clawed hand tore through his back muscles, gripping onto his spine, before with a slight grunt he ripped a part his spinal cord out of the man's back, in a shower of blood. The man let loose a single scream of agony, before he collapsed bonelessly to the floor.

Seeing this the final Shinobi stumbled, falling to the ground as he futilely tried to back away from the advancing Naruto. His eyes fixed on Naruto's bloodstained hands, small crimson droplets spattering onto the floor as he prowled forwards.

"P-please, don't…." The man begged, his eyes wide with terror as he backed away from his unstoppable attacker.

Naruto didn't give him the chance to finish his pleading, as he reached up and gripped the hilt of his sword, before with a single swing he unsheathed it and beheaded the rogue Shinobi. The Shinobi's head falling to the forest floor behind him with a dull thud.

A frown appeared on Naruto's face as he looked down at the twitching body of the now headless man. When the men had fled he had been expecting more of a hunt, his blood had already begun pumping faster. Unfortunately though it seemed these men's escaping skills were almost as poor as their fighting skills. It was disappointing to say the least, Naruto had at least been hoping that their numbers would make this more of a challenge.

It seemed he had gotten his hopes up for nothing.

With that thought in mind Naruto sheathed his sword and then shoved a hand into the pocket of his coat and pulled out a tightly furled scroll. Opening it Naruto then proceeded to seal away the remains of the two Shinobi who had attempted to flee. He then turned and headed back to the camp, ignoring the scared captives in the prison wagon for now, as he instead walked around the camp sealing up the remains of the Shinobi he had killed. He would need proof after all if he wanted to collect his reward from the Daimyo.

Eventually Naruto went to collect the last body, it was the Shinobi who he had pinned to the tree with the sword. Looking at his glazed eyes and ignoring the whimpering he could hear coming from the prison wagon, instead looking down at the sword. It was buried to the hilt in the man's stomach and had in fact penetrated through the tree, the tip of the blade stick out of the other side. With a dis-compassionate gaze Naruto snapped the hilt of the sword off, allowing the dead man to slump forwards and collapse on the floor.

A few minutes later with the bloody remains of the twelve Shinobi he had killed all sealed up in the once again rolled up scroll, Naruto then shoved it in his pocket. Making plans to go to a bounty station first, just to see if any of these men had a decent bounty on their heads, or at least better than the five thousand ryo a head the Daimyo of Rice Country was offering.

Nodding his head Naruto turned to look at the prison wagon, ignoring the whinnying of the nearby horses as they smelt the fresh blood in the air, and the whimpers of the prisoners as they saw Naruto's amber gaze fix on them. He might as well let them out.

Naruto grunted in irritation at this before he walked over to the prison wagon, gripping both sides of the cage door, his claws digging into the melt like a hot knife through butter. Before with a single heave Naruto tore the front of the cage off its hinges, before he turned and hurdled it away into the surrounding forest.

"Right then, you're all free to go." Naruto said abruptly as he turned and walked away, not even turning to look to see whether the prisoners had taken the opportunity to get off the wagon. No instead he focused on the one, strong remaining chakra signature. The one within the wagon, waiting to see if they would do anything.

When nothing happened Naruto turned back around only to see none of the captives had left the safety of the cage, as they instead all looked on at him with fear. Irritation rose up in Naruto at this, but with a bit of effort he pushed it down. "The nearest settlement is twelve miles in that direction, I would suggest you calm down the horses, attach them to this wagon and start heading there. I would also suggest you scavenge the area and take any of the weapons that are left behind." Naruto said pointing in the direction of the last village the Shinobi had attacked, the one which had survivors.

Naruto could now see the confusion of the faces in the cage as they heard what he said. "The sooner you leave the sooner you can start returning to your homes. All of them are still there, if a little burnt, and there are still survivors there who will no doubt help you get back to your homes. Well except for that logger's camp, that one's is burned to the ground with no survivors."

As he said this he got a more noticeable reaction as one or two of the twenty or so prisoners gained looks of shock and surprise. He also noticed how one of the prisoners, a pretty girl with long black hair who looked to be around Naruto's own age, flinched as she heard what he said about the logger's camp. This girl also happened to be the one who he could sense had strong chakra, curious.

"Well go on then." Naruto said brusquely as he turned and walked away, heading for the camp fire set up in the centre of the camp. Idly dragging one of the logs the Shinobi had been using as a seat over, as he sat down and took the lid off one of the cooking pots and sniffed the stew inside suspiciously.

As Naruto was doing this the captives began to slowly get out of the prison wagon, cautiously going about the tasks Naruto had suggested. Keeping a wary eye on the silver haired Sage as they did so. Their desire for freedom and home warring against the innate fear Naruto had inspired in them with his savage butchery of the twelve rogue Shinobi.

Naruto for the most part ignored them, the mindless sheep that they were, instead he focused on the stew as he checked it for poison, before upon finding it clean of any contamination he began scouting around for a bowl. Despite his apparent nonchalance however he was very much aware of what was going on, his senses still on overdrive and his body prepared to leap into action at any moment. After all, after close to a year of dealing with Shinobi, Naruto knew well enough how tricky they could be. The girl in the cage might have seemed like some innocent captive, but he would still not let his guard down.

Ten minutes later as Naruto was finishing off his second bowl, of the surprising delicious beef stew. As he did so he tensed slightly as the former prisoners began to leave the campsite, using the wagon as Naruto had suggested. That however was not the reason for his tensing. The reason was that one of the captives had stayed behind, the one who felt like she had had Shinobi training.

 **( - )**

Naruto remained tense as he felt the girl approaching him. He had no doubt what so ever that if needed he could rip this girl's head off with ease and there was absolutely nothing she could do to stop him. The thing was though the girl should know that too. She had after all just seen him decimate twelve other Shinobi. Despite this though as the rest of the former captives left this girl stayed behind.

Naruto's eyes narrowed as he heard the sound of the girl approaching him, she wasn't trying to hide her presence. Instead she just walked up to him. He could also feel no change in her chakra, telling him she wasn't molding it or preparing a Shinobi technique, not that he could tell at least.

His curiousity intensified.

"Is there something you want?" Naruto asked abruptly, not turning around as he felt the girl freezing up.

He heard a slight exhalation of breath, before the girl spoke, her voice soft and gentle yet holding a surprising amount of strength in it. "I have nowhere to go."

"I told you where the nearest settlements were, you should have gone with the others and they could have helped you get home." Naruto replied bluntly, still not turning around.

"There would be no point." The girl replied, her voice breaking slightly as she said that. "You said it yourself, my home was burned to the ground and there were no survivors."

"The logger's camp?" Naruto guessed, shifting as he turned to look at the girl out of the corner of his eye.

It was like Naruto first thought, the girl looked to be around thirteen, with a pretty face, waist length black hair, a still partially immature body and pale skin. Her clothing was the simple garb one would expect from a rural dwelling civilian, currently looking a bit grimy and damaged, no doubt from the attack on her home and her subsequent capture.

"I have nowhere to go." The girl repeated her gaze hollow, and her tone no longer as strong as before.

"How's that my problem?" Naruto asked abruptly, cocking an eyebrow as he waited for a response.

The girl didn't answer for a few seconds after that, her gaze instead running over Naruto's muscled frame and his blood stained hands. "You killed them… the men who murdered my family and burnt down my home…"

"I did yes." Naruto responded, curiousity beginning to rise up inside him as he looked at the girl, wondering where she was going with this.

"Can you teach me? Teach me how to fight, how to kill?" The girl asked, her eyes locking fearlessly with Naruto's faintly glowing amber eyes.

"Why on earth would I do that?" Naruto asked, his tone not cruel or condescending, just curious. "Especially since you already seem to have had some training. I can sense your chakra, it is stronger and more controlled than a civilians?"

The girl didn't bat an eyelash as she heard that, instead she just replied softly. "My father taught me. He wanted me to be able to defend myself. He was a former Missing-nin, he taught me chakra control, and genjutsu's, his specialty."

Naruto cocked an eyebrow as he heard this. "Sound like you already know how to fight, join a Shinobi Village or something, I am sure they'll happily take you."

"When our home was attacked, my father and I… we attempted to fight back. We were overwhelmed though, my father was killed, as was my mother and all of our family friends. I don't know what would have happened to me if you hadn't come and killed those men." The girl replied ignoring Naruto's previous suggestion. Her tone hitching for a second as she spoke and her grief slipping in for just a moment, before it strengthened as she continued to gaze resolutely into Naruto's eyes, not backing down. "I want to come with you! I want to learn how to fight like you do, how to kill bastards like those men, like you did!"

Naruto gazed at her curiously as he heard this. Once again relying on his heightened senses as he looked carefully at the girl. She wasn't lying to him he could tell that much, she was scared, she was grieving, she was nervous, but she wasn't lying. More than that she was alone in this world, like he Naruto had been before Akela and Fenrir had taken him in.

Letting out a sigh Naruto turned away from the girl.

She didn't move he could tell that much, but he could hear her heart begin to beat faster, as fear and panic rose up within her.

"Sit down," Naruto said bluntly, idly grabbing up another bowl from the ground as he did so. The girl's heart stopped beating, for just a second it missed a beat. Then it started hammering again, in shock and surprise. "There is some more stew left, you are going to need your energy. We leave in an hour!"

The girl stumbled forward as she heard that, taking a seat just to the side and away from Naruto, her eyes locked on him, an unreadable expression on her face as she watched him fill the bowl with stew before he shoved it over to her.

"Do you have a name?" Naruto asked cocking an eyebrow in curiousity as he saw the girl grab the bowl from his hand and begin eating. Not even bothering to put on airs and graces as she brought the bowl up to her mouth.

The girl paused as she heard this, lowering the bowl enough so she was once again looking at Naruto.

"Yeah, the name's Kin." The girl replied, her voice once again soft, yet her gaze showing her inner strength. "Kin Tsuchi."

 **( - )**

 **AN: So what did you all think? In this chapter we got to find out more about Naruto and his character we get to see how he interacts with the world and how he settled into being in the Elemental Nations after his secluded upbringing in the Black Forest.**

 **We also get to see some of his abilities and get to see the introduction of a character I always liked, even if she was shown for very little time. I liked her design, her style of fighting and think she was somewhat underused. That's just my opinion though.**

 **Anyway I hope you all liked the chapter, and like the differences that are beginning to become present between Toad Sage Mode and Wolf Sage Mode. As well as Naruto's rather distinct fighting style. His ambitions and his goals. They might not be as lofty or selfless as in canon but I think they are good goals for a developing character to start off with.**

 **Hope you all leave a comment and a review and I will see you all next time most likely with either a chapter or this or a chapter of Dead Man Walking as my Road to Hell story has stalled briefly as the current chapter is a tricky one to write.**

 **See you all later.**

 **Seagate.**


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Hey all here is the next chapter hope you all enjoy it. Was a bit tricky to write but I got through it. Also appreciate all the support the story has gotten so far and hope you all continue to enjoy it.**

 **Also hope you all leave a comment or a review, and if you have any questions or suggestions PM me.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

 **( - )**

 **(Last Time)**

 _"_ _When our home was attacked, my father and I… we attempted to fight back. We were overwhelmed though, my father was killed, as was my mother and all of our family friends. I don't know what would have happened to me if you hadn't come and killed those men." The girl replied ignoring Naruto's previous suggestion. Her tone hitching for a second as she spoke and her grief slipping in for just a moment, before it strengthened as she continued to gaze resolutely into Naruto's eyes, not backing down. "I want to come with you! I want to learn how to fight like you do, how to kill bastards like those men, like you did!"_

 _Naruto gazed at her curiously as he heard this. Once again relying on his heightened senses as he looked carefully at the girl. She wasn't lying to him he could tell that much, she was scared, she was grieving, she was nervous, but she wasn't lying. More than that she was alone in this world, like he Naruto had been before Akela and Fenrir had taken him in._

 _Letting out a sigh Naruto turned away from the girl._

 _She didn't move he could tell that much, but he could hear her heart begin to beat faster, as fear and panic rose up within her._

 _"_ _Sit down," Naruto said bluntly, idly grabbing up another bowl from the ground as he did so. The girl's heart stopped beating, for just a second it missed a beat. Then it started hammering again, in shock and surprise. "There is some more stew left, you are going to need your energy. We leave in an hour!"_

 _The girl stumbled forward as she heard that, taking a seat just to the side and away from Naruto, her eyes locked on him, an unreadable expression on her face as she watched him fill the bowl with stew before he shoved it over to her._

 _"_ _Do you have a name?" Naruto asked cocking an eyebrow in curiousity as he saw the girl grab the bowl from his hand and begin eating. Not even bothering to put on airs and graces as she brought the bowl up to her mouth._

 _The girl paused as she heard this, lowering the bowl enough so she was once again looking at Naruto._

 _"_ _Yeah, the name's Kin." The girl replied, her voice once again soft, yet her gaze showing her inner strength. "Kin Tsuchi."_

 **( - )**

 **Chapter 3**

 **( - )**

 **(With Naruto)**

Naruto's breaths came out low and slow as he loped through the surrounding woodlands. His feet not making a sound as he deftly ran through the trees, his amber eyes fixed on the large mountainous area ahead. Not pausing for a second as he closed in on his prey.

His pace was relentless as he tore through the forest, not pausing as he leapt over rocks, weaved through the surrounding trees. His movements agile despite his pace, his movement's silent as he breezed through the forest, his senses flaring, his guard up and ready for anything.

A few seconds later Naruto came to a stop, his feet barely making a sound as he did so. Narrowing his eyes, Naruto shifted slightly on the spot, his head raised as he sniffed the air, his other senses extended as he lazily surveyed the area. His prey was near, he could sense them. He may be actively stopping himself from sensing their chakra, but he could still smell them and hear the beating of their heart. To a normal Shinobi this might have passed unnoticed, but to Naruto it made finding his prey easy.

"You're still not quiet enough, Kin." Naruto said softly, his amber eyes flickering up to look at the black haired girl in the trees above him. The slightest of grins passing across his face as he saw the put out look on her face, as she glanced down at him. Her hands held up ready to make a hand seal.

Letting out an irritated sigh, Kin dropped down from the tree branch she had previously been crouched on. Her feet not making a sound as she landed in a crouch just before Naruto. Standing up Kin had to look up as she met Naruto's amused gaze, issuing another sigh of frustration as she did so.

"It's not exactly easy you know, hiding form someone with ridiculously enhanced senses and the ability to sense chakra…" Kin complained, her left hand resting on her hip as she looked up at Naruto with a scowl.

"But I didn't find you by sensing your chakra. I found you by hearing the beat of your heart and smelling your scent." Naruto replied in amusement, as he patted Kin on the shoulder.

Kin flushed red as she heard that, deliberately looking away from him. "Well I tried to hide my scent with mud. But what can I do about my heart?"

"You need to calm yourself. You must always be in control, even during a hunt. A single mistake and your prey could slip through your claws." Naruto replied as he looked down on her. Thinking as he did about how heard this was for him when he had been training with his brothers and sisters. Back then he had always gotten to excited, and this had given himself away.

It was a difficult lesson to learn and even harder to put in practice. When you are hunting your prey, you must be calm, cold and silent, you must be in absolute control of your mind and body. Otherwise you were likely to get caught up in the thrill and alert your prey before you were ready. Once you had caught up to your prey, well you could give in to the thrill and the exultation, but whilst you are stalking them, you shouldn't alert them to your presence.

"I know, I know." Kin grumbled, kicking at the earth at her feet as she did so.

Naruto merely chuckled in amusement. It had been about six months since he had allowed Kin to join him, and since then he had become somewhat fond of her. A wolf was a pack animal by nature, and Naruto was no different. As although he enjoyed being a bit of a lone wolf sometimes, he infinitely preferred it when he had a bit of company. Or a pack as he liked to call it, much to Kin's embarrassment.

Looking down at Kin a slight smile spread across Naruto's face. She had changed a lot in the six months he had known her, physically, mentally and emotionally.

She was still a beauty, her long silky black hair now tied in a ponytail which reached to just below her waist. Her body was stronger than before, more flexible and lithe too. She stood taller than when Naruto had first met her, and her stance was more confident. Her paled skin had also gained a bit of a tan, as nowadays she spent the vast majority of her time in the great outdoors more often than not accompanying Naruto on his missions.

Her outfit had changed to, gone were the old civilian clothes she wore. Nowadays she dressed more like a Shinobi. She wore a pair of black Shinobi pants, a grey scarf wrapped around her throat, a mesh undershirt her and a grey tunic over the top. She had a leather belt around her waist, attached to which were two pouches at the small of her back, both of which filled with an assortment of kunai, shuriken and senbon. Also attached to her belt, on her right hip there was a foot long tanto, a small very sharp knife that she had insisted on buying when they had travelled through a small town in the Land of Forests. Just as she had insisted on Naruto teaching her how to use it.

The biggest change she had gone through however, were her eyes. Her dark eyes now gleamed with strength and confidence, something that had been absent in them the first few weeks she had travelled with him, still haunted as she was by the loss of her family. Now though that grief had turned into a steely resolve, a resolve to get stronger, a resolve to hunt down and kill the Master of those men who had murdered her family. A resolve to be the best that she can be so that never again would she be a victim.

It was a strength of will Naruto had come to admire about her. Many would have folded and become a hollow shell of a person after the tragedy Kin had been through. But she had come through it stronger.

She had harnessed her resolve to become stronger when it had come to her training. When Naruto had first begun to teach her he had held back a lot, knowing as he did that he could very easily kill her if he went all out. His claws could rip her to pieces, his punches could shatter her bones and liquidate her organs. Such was the power of Sage Mode.

But when Kin had found this out she had rebuked him, much to his amusement she had shouted at him and demanded that he not hold back. Her passion and ferocity had surprised Naruto, and so although even now he didn't go all out, he was a lot less forgiving than before. In the beginning their taijutsu spars ended with Kin unconscious and Naruto having to carry her back to their room.

Despite that though she had still insisted on him not holding back, as she continued to test herself against him. Adapting her style of fighting to accommodate for Naruto's far greater strength, speed and agility, as well as his near infinite stamina and his inhuman durability. Upon realising she would never overpower Naruto, she had instead begun to try and out think him. Using a mixture of genjutsu, poisons, traps and her natural flexibility and agility to fight him.

She had still never come close to beating him, but she seemed to improve with ever spar. Her style becoming sharper her strikes more accurate, her tactics trickier. This had led to not just Kin becoming stronger and smarter but Naruto also, as it had encouraged him to adapt to whatever tricks Kin pulled off, either with her genjutsu's, or with her traps and poisons.

Due to this the two of them had got into somewhat of a routine, every day at daybreak they would start the day off with a two hour training session together. Which usually consisted of a brief warm up followed by a taijutsu spar. In which Naruto would start off on defensive, before going on the offensive, only holding back enough not to kill her. This would invariably end up with Kin receiving dozens of bruises and multiple broken knuckles or fingers, mostly caused by her punching Naruto's rock-hard skin.

After this Kin would heal her hands, using her limited but well-practiced medical-ninjutsu skills she had learned from her father. Naruto would then train on his own for another two hours, pushing himself to the limits as he sought to master his taijutsu, kenjutsu and ninjutsu skills.

Kin meanwhile would use this time to practice her genjutsu, often trying to put Naruto under a genjutsu during his training. More often than not though he would break the genjutsu in moments, which forced Kin to adapt as she continually tried to get the better of the Sage. She would also spend some time practicing with her tanto and plotting how she would try and beat Naruto next time they fought.

It was a routine that the both of them enjoyed, not only because it allowed them to progress their individual skills. With Kin getting stronger every day, her genjutsu becoming more insidious and adaptable as she constantly tried to use them to beat Naruto. Naruto however was not only fine tuning his skills, but was also getting better and better at sensing and breaking genjutsu, he still had trouble casting them though. But also because the two of them just enjoyed spending time together.

Of course it wasn't all fun and games. Kin's presence meant that Naruto now had another mouth to feed. Which meant the two of them had to take more missions. To begin with Naruto had stuck with simple C-rank and B-rank missions, just whilst eh had Kin tagging along. But as she became stronger, Naruto began to start taking A-rank missions. Hunting down stronger, more powerful Shinobi. For this Kin had pulled her own weight, often using her genjustu skills to support Naruto's heavily combat based abilities.

All in all the two of them were becoming a very deadly combination.

 **( - )**

"Right then, we are here. Keep low and be ready for anything." Naruto muttered as he patted the Kin's shoulder, not missing how her lips twitched upwards as he did so. "This guy isn't an A-rank Missing–nin for no reason."

With that Naruto began to move forwards, his senses flared as they approached the site of their next bounty.

Hearing what Naruto said, Kin rolled her eyes. She had spent enough time with him to know he could crush most Shinobi, no matter their supposed rank. Despite that though he remained cautious, slowly working his way up instead of taking S-rank bounty requests like she knew he wanted too. When she had asked him why he had only told her that patience was a virtue, and the suspense would only make it that much sweeter when he finally did hunt down and kill one of the bigger names.

That had only made Kin even more confused. She didn't question it though, knowing as she did that Naruto did things in his own time and in his own way. She would probably have more luck defeat Orochimaru of the Sannin than she would in changing Naruto's mind once it was made up.

Letting out another sigh, Kin turned and followed Naruto as he walked to the edge of the forest, the two of them soon emerging from the trees and coming to a slight outcropping that overlooked a small mining settlement below.

This little innocuous settlement was the site of their latest mission. Apparently some Missing-nin from the Village Hidden in the Mist had been causing trouble, the man having effectively taken over a small mining settlement. Using it as a base for him and his band of thugs and bandits. He was also, or at least according to the rumours they had heard the next town over, been burying the villagers who opposed him alive. And if that wasn't bad enough, the sick fuck apparently cried over their deaths as he did it.

Suffice to say the mission had ended up attracting Naruto's attention as the leader of this rabble was strangely enough a somewhat well-known Shinobi, an A-rank Shinobi at that, went by the name of Raiga Kurosuki. The man was apparently a former member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist and had a dangerous enough reputation to attract Naruto's interest.

He also apparently had a one hundred and fifty thousand ryo bounty on his head. That was what Kin was more interested in, it was enough money for the two of them to live comfortably off for the next six months. Not that Kin was under any delusion that they would stop hunting bounties even if they did have that much money. No killing this Shinobi would just likely spur Naruto on to hunting down even more dangerous prey. Not that that bother Kin that much, as the stronger Shinobi they faced often had useful Jutsu scrolls or tools she could loot off them.

Plus she was hoping one day that she and Naruto would come across a bounty for whoever it was that sent those Shinobi who destroyed her home and murdered her family. She only wished that the men had called their Master by his name instead of just calling him 'the Master', or that Naruto had left one alive so that they could interrogate him. Still though, Kin was content to wait for now, knowing as she did that one day she would track this 'Master' down, and then gut him or her like a pig.

Naruto oblivious to Kin's thoughts continued forward. Coming to a stop on the edge of the rock outcropping. His amber eyes lazily surveying the landscape before him.

"How many do you count?" Kin asked as cam to standing next to him, glancing sideways at Naruto as she did so. Knowing his eyesight and senses were far better than her own.

Naruto didn't respond at first, focusing as he counted the number of thugs and bandits in the small settlement. His senses spread out as he sensed the chakra within all of them, assessing the group to see whether they were more than the common thugs they appeared.

Currently the bandits were overseeing a number of civilians, probably people local to the area, as they were forced to work, breaking up and collecting rocks from around the mine. Over all none of them seemed that well-armed carrying with them a mixture of spears, swords and clubs, none of which seemed to be that good a quality.

"Well?" Kin asked impatiently as she looked over at Naruto, before looking back down at the settlement.

"There is around eleven bandits down below, none of whom are Shinobi and around twenty four civilians." Naruto replied his amber eyes narrowed as he leaned forward, his clawed hands resting on the rock outcropping in front of him as he surveyed the lower part of the settlement.

Narrowing his eyes as he didn't sense the A-rank Shinobi they had come here to hunt, Naruto then glanced up at s small collection of buildings built further up the mountain. The buildings were just out of range of his senses, but he was going to take a stab in the dark and say that this, Raiga Kurosaki, was somewhere further up the mountain. "I haven't been able to sense our target in the settlement below, it's all just common brigands down there."

Kin scowled as she heard that, before she followed Naruto's gaze and saw the collection of ramshackle wooden buildings that were further up the mountain. "You reckon he's up there."

"It seems likely." Naruto replied shortly, standing up straight as he did, his hands clenching and unclenching as he stared at the settlement below. A thoughtful expression spreading across his face, as he looked from the small settlement below to the building built further up the mountain. He could see a path running up from the village, it looked to be the only path leading up there, other than that it was all sheer rock faces. But then again for someone trained to use chakra a sheer rock face wasn't much of an obstacle.

"So what do you want to do?" Kin asked shortly as she saw him looking form the village to the buildings above, guessing what was going through his head. Personally she would have preferred to attack he village, but she was still somewhat new to this and was content to follow Naruto's lead. "Do we attack the village, or do you want to try and sneak past?"

Naruto hummed slightly at that, a thoughtful look on his face as he came to his decision.

"We attack the village, we kill all the thugs doing it as silently as possible" Naruto began a savage grin on his face, his eyes flashing with bloodthirst. "Then we go after Raiga."

"And the civilians?" Kin asked a slight frown on her face, as she looked down at the settlement. Scowling as she saw the how the locals were being forced to work by the thugs. Already she could feel anger building up within her, as she saw the strong abusing the weak.

"Put them under a genjutsu." Naruto replied giving Kin a sideways glance as he did so. "Make them all unconscious, I don't want them getting in our way."

Kin nodded at that, crouching down as she made to leap forward. Before she did though Naruto grabbed her by the back of her shirt and dragged her back.

"Make sure to do it silently. We don't want Raiga to know we are here until we want him to. I don't want him doing a runner, not yet." Naruto added as he made eye contact with Kin.

"Yeah, yeah I get it." Kin replied as she straightened her clothing, rolling her eyes as she did so. "This isn't my first time you know." Kin added, before a slight smirk spread across her face. "At this anyway…." She trailed off, before giving Naruto a wink.

Naruto cocked an eyebrow as that, before he crouched low to the ground and leapt forward. His body a blur as he silently leapt from the rock outcropping into the valley below.

"Aww, he's no fun." Kin grumbled as quickly followed after him. The slightest of smiles beginning to form across her face as she saw pursued him. For all his feral appearance and ruthlessness she couldn't help but enjoy her time with Naruto.

She still missed her family. That was a hole she didn't think could ever be filled. But at the same time she wasn't going to curl up and die. Naruto was part of the reason for that, since travelling with him she had found a reason to go on and to get stronger. She had found content in the routine she shared with him. She had also learned to be proud of the things she accomplished, and hunger for the excitement the hunt gave her.

Naruto's lifestyle was very addictive. There was a freedom about it that being a part of a Shinobi Village would never compare with. Still though she wished she knew more about the silver haired Sage. She knew he was around her age as surprising as that may be considering the fact he looked closer to eighteen than thirteen. She knew he was raised in a forest by someone called Akela. She also knew he had master Senjutsu. And that was about all she knew about him, Naruto wasn't the kind of person to talk about himself and what little she did know was things she had wheedled out of him over the last six months.

A slight frown passed across her face at that thought, before she pushed those feelings away. Instead focusing on the task ahead, the both of them had just reached the outskirts of the settlement, battle would soon be joined.

 **( - )**

"Come on hurry up!" A short man, with a scruffy black beard and a mop of greasy brown hair shouted, a nasty expression on his face as he watched the villagers working. "We aren't paying you for nothing you know!"

The man followed this up with a loud laugh, something a number of his compansions joined in on, as they passed around a wineskin.

"Erm Pon… I don't think we're paying these guys…." A tall skinny man, with shaggy brown hair and a vacant expression on his face said.

The now named Pon turned to glare at the other man, a look of annoyance prominent on his face. "That's the point of the joke dumbass!"

"Ohh…" The other man replied nodding his head as he did so, before he paused and let out a laugh. "Good one Pon!"

Pon shook his head as he saw this. "Sometimes Li! Sometimes you're so fucking stupid I swear it's a miracle you remember how to breathe."

"Ha! That's funny Pon!" The now named Li replied with a guffaw.

Pon's expression was blank as he looked at the laughing Li. "I wasn't joking…"

"Oi! Can you two just fuck and get it over with!" Another one of the thugs shouted up, taking his eyes off the toiling villagers as he did so. "Otherwise Raiga will give you a funeral!"

That shut all of the men up, all of them shifting uncomfortably, their eyes shifting to the upper portion of the village, further up the mountain.

"Right you are." Pon replied uncomfortably, coughing into his hand before turning back to the villagers. "You lot hurry up! Raiga wants the mine running faster!"

The villagers below grumbled a bit at that but otherwise increased their pace. They had after all seen the cruelty of the one they called Raiga. It didn't matter who you were, whether you were one of his thugs or a villager, if you pissed him off he would kill you. And your death would be long, drawn out and terrible.

"Come on faster you lazy fucks!" Pon shouted again, slamming the base of his spear into the ground to emphasize his words.

He was about to speak again before he suddenly stopped his eyes widening as he heard a faint whistling sound. Looking around Pon's vision began to blur, even as the sound of whistle began to reverberate around his head.

"W-wha what…." Pon tried to say, his head throbbing as his vision blurred even further. He soon stumbled to the ground, his hands slapping into he wet mud as an overwhelming feeling of weariness came over him.

All around the prone man the others were all similarly affected. Bandits and villagers all were falling to their knees, their heads throbbing and their gazes blurred. All the while the low whistling sound continued to sound out across the village, the sound was faint, barely audible but even so it had succeeded in incapacitating nearly forty people.

"You're getting better." Naruto spoke up, a look of faint surprise on his face as he saw all the disabled men and women around him.

"I know." Kin said, a slight grin on her face as she looked over at Naruto, the village once again becoming silent as she stopped whistling.

Sound based genjustu that was where Kin excelled. It was a talent she had first learned from her father along with standard genjustu techniques, but had since developed whilst in Naruto's company. Using sound as a base for casting genjutsu was in her opinion somewhat of a niche technique, far more subtle than standard genjutsu techniques. Far more versatile too.

"It's not exactly silent though is it?" Naruto asked in amusement as he walked into the village, glancing briefly over at the incapacitated villagers, before looking over at the bandits. They were all beginning to recover, it was slow, but a couple were slowly pushing themselves to their feet.

Kin shrugged in response, unsheathing her tanto as she approached one of the hunched over thugs. Grabbing the disorientated man by the back of his head, Kin yanked him backwards, exposing his throat as she slashed her tanto across it leaving a gaping bloody wound. "I was as quiet as I could be. Besides it was so quiet I doubt any of the ones up top will have heard."

Naruto rolled his eyes at that, barely glancing down as he grabbed one of the thugs by the head and snapped his neck. Barely straining as the man's spine let out a sickening crunching noise as his head twisted one hundred and eighty degrees. "You doubt it? That's the point I am trying to make. Some Shinobi have enhanced hearing and might have heard you. You always have to be cautious, if not you could find yourself getting ambushed."

"Yeah, yeah I get it." Kin replied as she thrust her tanto into the back of one of the bandit's skulls, felling him instantly. Glancing round she noticed that the rest were nearly back on their feet, the villagers not far behind.

"Can you put the villagers to sleep?" Naruto asked as he too noticed what was going on. Twisting around, his claws gleamed crimson as he tore through the throat of two of the bandits, before thrusting his hand through the chest of a third.

Kin nodded as she heard him, pursing her lips as she began to whistle again, the tune very slightly different this time. The pitch was still quiet, but it was also notably several octaves higher, barely on the spectrum of human hearing. Though it was still on the spectrum of Naruto's hearing apparently, as she noticed him flinch a little as she whistled.

Seeing this she made a note to herself that high pitched noises seemed to irritate him. It may come in useful the next time they sparred, she was still hoping to get a proper hit on him. So far she had only managed to strike his hands when he was blocking her.

The instant Kin stared whistling again the rest of the people in the area all froze. All of them freezing in place for a moment before their eyes rolled up into the back of their heads as they slumped forward, now all unconscious.

"Why didn't you do that the first time?" Naruto asked curiously as he shook his right hand, flicking off crimson flecks of blood, as he looked around him. All the bandits were now dead, whilst all the villagers were passed out in the mud below.

"Well it wouldn't be right if we killed those bandits in their sleep." Kin replied with a shrug as she wiped the blood off of her tanto, using the clothing of one of the dead men to do so. Before she wandered over to Naruto.

Naruto shrugged at that, he could see her point. There was no sport in killing sleeping prey, then again neither was there much sport in killing disorientated men but at least they had a chance. Not that the outcome would have been any different. No, Kin's genjutsu were deadly, even he had temporarily succumbed to some of them. It would take a skilled Shinobi to throw off some of the more deadly ones from her repertoire.

"Right. Well come on then. We need to head up and kill Raiga." Naruto said as he gave the area one more glance, before he began to head for the mountain path. His senses still flared just in case anyone attempted to spy on or ambush them.

"Hmm?" Kin hummed in response, looking around the area too, as she looked to see if there was any good loot she could take. Not that she expected much from a small, poor mining settlement like this. Seeing that there was none, she ended up turning and running after Naruto as he began to run up the mountain path, his movements fluid and silent.

 **( - )**

 **(A few minutes later)**

A few minutes later found both Kin and Naruto crouched on a rock outcropping, looking down at Raiga Kurosaki as he wept at a freshly turned grave, a number of his followers standing around him wearing funeral clothing watching the dangerous Shinobi's theatrics. It seemed Raiga had gone ahead and murdered another person, burying them alive as a form of execution. It was truly a nasty way to go.

"Okay, so here is the plan, I go kill Raiga whilst you kill the others." Naruto said quietly, his eyes fixed on Raiga's back. Narrowed as he sensed not just Raiga's chakra, but another source that seemed to be attached to the swordsman's back. It was a person that much was obvious to Naruto, and judging by the way their chakra circulated through their body and into their eyes, it was a person with a Doujustu.

Which meant that this was going to be harder than Naruto thought, as from what little he knew of eye based Bloodline Abilities, they were a pain in the arse. He had heard about a couple of Bloodlines like that and all of them sounded like an annoyance. Still though, this might give him a bit of practice fighting against Doujutsu.

"They should be quite easy for you to finish off, once you have done that I want you to hold back. I want to test myself against this Raiga, see how my swordsmanship fares against his." Naruto continued, not looking at Kin as he continued to watch Raiga, making sure as he did that the two of them had not been noticed. "Is that alright with you?"

"Yeah, sure do what you want. You go first and then I'll follow." Kin replied, confident that she could take down the untrained bandits. As for letting Naruto handle the A-rank Shinobi, well she had no problem with that either.

Naruto nodded at that, his amber eyes narrowing and is claws sinking into the rock at his feet as he prepared to jump.

Without a sound Naruto leapt forward, leaping several metres into the air before he rapidly descended on the group below. Behind him he could sense Kin already moving, the girl charging forward on foot, her tanto in one hand and her chakra already beginning to churn as she prepared to use a genjutsu.

 **( - )**

As Naruto descended, he took note of the fact that Raiga turned to face him, his eyes widening before an ugly sneer crept across his face. His hands already moving for his blades, as he made to unsheathe them. Raiga already beginning to move as he jumped backwards.

Naruto's eyes narrowed as he saw Raiga's actions. Even as he crashed into the ground the impact making it crater at his feet. The instant he landed Naruto lunged forward, straight away going on the attack, his blood burning in his veins.

Raiga however had already moved away, his movements fast as he leapt back putting some space between him and Naruto. The sneer on his face growing, as his dull red eyes met Naruto's glowing amber ones. The arrogance they held plain to see.

"You don't know what you're getting yourself into kid!" Raiga snarled, setting his feet as he watched Naruto turn to face him a feral grin spreading across his face and his amber eyes gleaming with challenge as he surveyed the former Hidden Swordsman of the Mist.

Naruto grinned as he looked over at Raiga, it seemed like Naruto had been right when he thought fighting against a Doujutsu user, or at least someone who was allied with one, would be tricky. Somehow Raiga had been able to sense Naruto's attack, which considering Naruto's speed and stealth was a surprising. Or at least the person on Raiga's back had been able to sense Naruto, a person who seemed to be hiding in a large canvas bag.

Seeing this Naruto assumed the Doujutsu user could see through the canvas material, that or he could sense Naruto's chakra. Either way he had seen Naruto coming and had warned Raiga.

After all from Raiga's Bingo Book entry he had elite level skill with his blades and his lightning jutsu, but in terms of his other Shinobi skills he was barely Jounin level. That being said Naruto was not too perturbed by this, as he had expected something along these lines happening the moment he had identified that Raiga had a partner.

Shifting his feet Naruto brought his hand up and grasped the hilt of his sword, slowly drawing the wickedly sharp blade. A feral grin spreading across his face. Yes, Naruto had no problem at all with this turn of events. As a Former Seven Swordsman of the Hidden Mist, Raiga had somewhat of a reputation as a skilled swordsman. Already Naruto could feel his blood racing, and the thrill of battle rising up within him as he prepared to test his skills with a sword against Raiga.

As Naruto was doing this, Kin had already engaged the rest of the bandits. Her tanto in hand as she bobbed and weaved through them, slashing at exposed limbs. All the while she let out a low whistle, disorientating her opponents as she quickly cut through them. Her Shinobi based skills making short work of the untrained thugs and brigands.

Seeing this Naruto smirked, the girl really had gotten stronger. With that in mind it was time Naruto pulled his own weight. Darting forward Naruto his sword held in his right hand he quickly engaged Raiga. His amber eyes gleaming in excitement as he saw that the man had drawn his own blades, the Kiba Blade. A set of finely crafted twin blades that sparked with lightning as he lunged at Naruto, straight away going for a decapitation.

Naruto took a step back, his eyes narrowing as he felt the concentrated lightning chakra flowing through those blades. Dodging Raiga's first swing, Naruto then lunged forward, his blade a blur as he went for a downward slash at Raiga. Which was followed by a swift set of rapid lunges and slashes, each strike flowing into the next as he began pushing Raiga back. Naruto's feet almost dancing across the ground, his blade a blur as he struck with both immense speed and strength. Quickly overwhelming, the slower and weaker Raiga.

A snarl spread across Raiga's face as he faced this onslaught. His skill with the twin blades was admirable, using the lightning flowing through them to his advantage as he defended himself. Releasing bolts of lightning at Naruto, with every clash of their blades.

Not that this deterred Naruto as his sword did not conduct Raiga's lightning, and the bolts Raiga did send out were easily avoided as he used the advantage Sage Mode gave him to sense the lightning chakra as it was released. Giving him an almost precognitive ability to avoid Raiga's attempts to paralyze and shock him with the stray blasts of lightning.

Undeterred by Raiga's counterattacks Naruto took another step forward, taking a strong base as he parried away Raiga's Kiba blades. Before he darted forward with a swift lunge, his blade scoring a bloody wound on Raiga's shoulder.

It would have impaled the man but at the last second he had dodged, throwing his body to the side.

Scowling as he saw this, Naruto once again scowled at the lump on Raiga's back. The moment before he had struck Raiga, he had heard a whispered warning being given to the man. It was because of this that the man had survived what would have been a crippling blow had it landed.

Letting out a slight growl Naruto rushed forward once again engaging Raiga as he lashed out with his sword, making the man backpedal as Naruto bulled forwards. A look of frustration entering Raiga's eyes as he swung both of his blades sideways at Naruto, probably hoping to make him back off and give Raiga more space to compose himself.

It didn't work though as Naruto ducked down low, avoiding the wide sweeping blades and instead delivering a solid kick to Raiga's right leg causing it to collapse under him before Naruto followed it up with a slash of his sword. Raiga only just managing to dodge as the blade cut through his clothing and bit into his skin, leaving a bloody trench running from his left hip to his right shoulder.

Naruto then follow this up with a light kick to Raiga's chest that sent him staggering backwards, the Kiba blades falling out of his loosened grip as he instead clasped the bloody wound on his chest. .

 **( - )**

 **(With Raiga)**

Staggering backward from his silver haired attacker. Raiga clasped to the bloody wound across his torso, his eyes widening as saw his attacker stand up straight again. His sword held lazily at his side, and his amber eyes locked hungrily on Raiga.

Seeing this Raiga's mouth went dry, fear beginning to grow within him as he saw his opponent didn't even look out of breathe. This foe was beyond him, he knew that much. He was faster, stronger and more skilled than him, Raiga could tell that. Just as he could tell the only reason he wasn't already was because this man, for whatever reason was toying with him.

Pushing his fear away for now, Raiga instead channeled his chakra to his wounds, stifling the blood flow and sooth the pain form the wounds as he did so. It was a temporary measure, but hopefully it would allow him to continue on long enough to at least escape this attacker.

"What do you see, Ranmaru?" Raiga muttered as he took a step back, his eyes flickering to his Kiba blades that lay in the mud behind his assailant assessing the likelihood of recovering them.

A soft voice replied back, the voice coming from the large backpack he had on his back. "R-Raiga, he's too powerful for you to fight. I've never seen anyone with this much chakra before, it not human, he's not human… he's a monster Raiga. W-We need to run now or he will kill us… we need to flee!"

"I know but it's not that easy. What about a genjutsu? Can your eyes cast one on him?" Raiga asked, his eyes narrowed as he tried to think up a strategy. Ranmaru was correct whoever this was, Raiga was out of his league. and with the wound's Raiga had already suffered he was unlikely to be able to fight his way out of this, which meant he would have to rely of Ranmaru using his Doujutsu to cast an irresistible genjutsu on the man. That should hopefully buy them enough time to grab the Kiba Blades and escape. But for that to happen Ranmaru would have to make eye contact with the feral looking man.

Ranmaru made to reply, but before he could his eyes widened and he instead shouted a warning to his friend, "Raiga he's coming get down!"

Raiga through instinct did what Ranmaru said, lunging into a low crouch. Just in time to as he saw the man's blade slice through the air overhead, the air thrumming as it did so. Rolling to the side he once again dodged as the silver haired man's clawed foot slammed into the ground, followed by his blade.

Rolling to his feet Raiga looked up in shock, only to find himself looking at a set of glowing amber eyes.

 **( - )**

 **(With Naruto)**

Naruto scowled as Raiga once again seemed to almost predict his attack. The child on his back was the reason, Naruto knew this now after he had listened into the brief conversation the two of them had had.

His eyes to appeared allowed him to see Naruto's attacks even through the canvas covering the boy, not only that but from what Raiga said they also seemed to be able to be able to cast eye based genjutsu. Naruto had never heard of a set of Doujutsu like this, but at the moment it sounded like some kind of cross between the Hyuuga Clan's famous Byakugan and the Uchiha Clan's legendary Sharingan. Either way it was powerful.

Not missing a beat Naruto leapt forward, his blade held at the ready as he once again engaged Raiga. The man avoided his first strike, and then his second. But his third, his third struck Raiga straight in the chest, Naruto's four foot long blade piercing through Raiga's chest and through the person on his back.

Blood bubbled from Raiga's mouth as he looked at Naruto in surprise, confused red eyes meeting glowing amber. Naruto just gazed levelly at him for a moment, before he twisted his blade and wrenched it out of Raiga's chest. With a dull thud Raiga collapsed backward, his eyes wide and vacant.

"Well you took your time." A glib voice spoke up from behind Naruto. Prompting him to turn around and smirk at the waiting Kin. Noting as he did the dozen or so dead bodies lying behind her, most of whom had their throats cut.

"I was enjoying myself." Naruto replied with a shrug, idly reaching down and tearing off a part of Raiga's clothing before he used it to wipe the blood of his blade. "How did your fight go?"

"It was easy, none of them had any real skills to speak of." Kin replied with a nonchalant shrug, her gaze instead resting on Raiga's dead body. "What about yours? Did he put up much of a fight?"

"Not really, he was a mediocre swordsman at best, mainly relying on the Kiba Blades abilities." Naruto replied in disappointment, glancing at the fallen blades that were lying in the mud a few feet away. The wielder of them might have been incompetent, but the blades themselves were powerful. Naruto would make sure to take them with him when he left. "He also had a partner."

"A partner?" Kin questioned her brow furrowed in confusion as she scanned the area looking for another dead Shinobi.

Seeing this Naruto shrugged before he used his foot to kick Raiga's body over, so it was now lying on its front.

Kin looked over curiously at Naruto as he did that.

"Yeah he had some kid with a set of Doujutsu on his back. The kid was abel to see and read my attacks and was warning Raiga about them. Ended up making the fight longer than it should have been." Naruto replied absentmindedly as he reached down and ripped the backpack of Raiga's back, the material tearing away to reveal a frail looking boy on his back. The kid looked to be around twelve or thirteen years old, with very aple skin, and thin brittle looking limbs.

Not that that mattered as the boy was dead, his eyes staring blankly straight ahead. A large bloody wound in his chest form Naruto's sword. Turning his body Naruto looked closely at his dead eyes, taking note as he did of the chakra that was slowly flowing out of them, his body no longer constantly providing it now he was dead.

"This kid's Doujutsu." Naruto said with a frown as he looked up at Kin, noting the curiousity on her face as she looked at the kids red eyes. "It was some kind of variant of a Sharingan or a Byakugan I am not sure. Either way it allowed him to see through this bag in all directions and help Raiga in tracking my movements and predicting my attacks. It also apparently could cast genjutsu, though I didn't see him dong it"

"Poor kid." Kin said as she looked down at the boy a bit of pity in her eyes. "Do you reckon Raiga forced him to help him?"

Naruto shrugged at that. "Can't say for sure but the kid seemed more than happy to help Raiga, or at least that was what I heard."

Kin sighed at that before nodding. It was a shame someone so young had to die, but if he had been willingly helping a monster like Raiga, someone who buried people alive and took pleasure from it. Then maybe it was better of that they were dead.

"What do we do now?" Kin asked as she once again looked around the area, before looking back at Naruto.

Naruto hummed at that, a thoughtful expression crossing his face, before he swung his blade up and down, decapitating Raiga's dead body. With that done he then pulled a scroll from out of his coat pocket, unrolling it as he did so before he first sealed up Raiga's decapitated head for the bounty. Then he walked over and grabbed the Kiba Blades, seal them inside the scroll too. With that done Naruto rolled the scroll back up and then shoved it into his pocket.

With that done Naruto then turned to Kin, a curious expression on his face. "Hey Kin, how good are you Medical Ninjutsu skills?"

Kin frowned at this question, not sure where it was coming from, but answering it anyway. "They're decent enough… why?"

Naruto paused for a second, looking down at the corpses of Raiga and the Ranmaru for a second before looking up at Kin a determined expression on his face. "Because I am going to implant those Doujutsu, and I want you to help."

 **( - )**

 **AN: And there is the chapter. And I have to admit it was much longer than I was planning. But I got a bit carried away. Either way I hope you all enjoyed it and hope you continue to support this story as it progresses. Also I have to admit I am quite liking the Kin/ Naruto partnership, subtlety meets power it is an interesting partnership, or at least in my opinion.**

 **Have to say this chapter was quite tricky to write, but I think I pulled it off. I hope. I always liked this arc in the Naruto story, just as I always found Ranmaru's Doujutsu very interesting, a part of me was quite disappointed that they never made anything of it. And they were just forgotten as the story instead obsessed over the Sharingan and the Rinnegan.**

 **The next chapter should be out soon so I hope you all stay tuned.**

 **Any questions PM me. I Love hearing from people. And other than that I hope you all leave a review and I will see you later.**

 **Seagate.**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: SO here we are with the next chapter. Sorry for a bit of a wait, I wanted to finish my Road To Hell chapter before I continued this story. Which by the way I have done, and it is now with my Beta.**

 **SO other than that I just want to thank everyone for all of the support I really appreciate it and hope that this chapter doesn't disappoint.**

 **As always if you have any questions or suggestions please PM me or leave a Review and I will try to get back to you. Though it is more likely in regards to PMs for me to answer immediately.**

 **So onto the story, I hope you all like it.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. As always this is my own version of Panory Bro's story, Dawn's Sage.**

 **( - )**

 **(Last Time)**

 _"This kid's Doujutsu." Naruto said with a frown as he looked up at Kin, noting the curiousity on her face as she looked at the kids red eyes. "It was some kind of variant of a Sharingan or a Byakugan I am not sure. Either way it allowed him to see through this bag in all directions and help Raiga in tracking my movements and predicting my attacks. It also apparently could cast genjutsu, though I didn't see him dong it"_

 _"_ _Poor kid." Kin said as she looked down at the boy a bit of pity in her eyes. "Do you reckon Raiga forced him to help him?"_

 _Naruto shrugged at that. "Can't say for sure but the kid seemed more than happy to help Raiga, or at least that was what I heard."_

 _Kin sighed at that before nodding. It was a shame someone so young had to die, but if he had been willingly helping a monster like Raiga, someone who buried people alive and took pleasure from it. Then maybe it was better of that they were dead._

 _"_ _What do we do now?" Kin asked as she once again looked around the area, before looking back at Naruto._

 _Naruto hummed at that, a thoughtful expression crossing his face, before he swung his blade up and down, decapitating Raiga's dead body. With that done he then pulled a scroll from out of his coat pocket, unrolling it as he did so before he first sealed up Raiga's decapitated head for the bounty. Then he walked over and grabbed the Kiba Blades, seal them inside the scroll too. With that done Naruto rolled the scroll back up and then shoved it into his pocket._

 _With that done Naruto then turned to Kin, a curious expression on his face. "Hey Kin, how good are you Medical Ninjutsu skills?"_

 _Kin frowned at this question, not sure where it was coming from, but answering it anyway. "They're decent enough… why?"_

 _Naruto paused for a second, looking down at the corpses of Raiga and the Ranmaru for a second before looking up at Kin a determined expression on his face. "Because I am going to implant those Doujutsu, and I want you to help."_

 **( - )**

 **Chapter 4**

 **( - )**

 **(With Kin)**

Kin rolled her shoulder irritably a scowl on her face as she looked around the heavily wooded forest she was currently in. It had been a month and a half since she and Naruto had taken down Raiga Kurosaki and cashed in his head. In the end it had turned out the money they had gained from claiming his bounty was very useful. After all Naruto had gotten it into his head that it would be a good idea to implant some random Doujutsu into his head. Putting the pressure on Kin as he did so, as he had also asked her to do the implanting, something she had no prior experience with.

Of course this hadn't bothered Naruto which meant that the moment they had cashed in Raiga's bounty they had gone back to Clover Town and used some of the money to rent out a room in the Lusty Leopard. Once there Naruto had insisted that they do the implantation, after all he didn't have a sealing scroll that could preserve human remains for long, maybe a week at most and even then there would be some deterioration.

Well either way they had gone ahead with the implantation, Naruto lying on the bed gritting his teeth as he stoically bore her removing first his right eye, a surprisingly clean thing if done properly. Not that it was any less unpleasant for Kin, but she bore it. After removing his right eye she had then implanted the boy, Ranmaru's eye, the smaller orb easily fitting within Naruto's empty socket.

Surprisingly Kin had needed to do very little healing after that, as Naruto it appeared had some kind of healing factor. Whether that was to do with his Sage Mode or something else Kin wasn't sure, all she knew was that the moment she inserted Ranmaru's Doujutsu in Naruto, his body had begun to start healing, immediately assimilating the eye into Naruto's body. In fact Kin had needed to do very little after that, which was probably good as she only knew how to do blunt force healing and not the more complicated things. She was only adept at Medical Ninjutsu at best after all.

After she had done the first eye the second one had been just as easy, though still a less than pleasant task. No, the implantation of the Doujutsu had not been that bad, it had been quick and relatively painless. It was the part after that had been a pain, when Naruto had sat up after his healing had finished he had become very very disorientated. At first he had struggled to control the eyes as he now found that he could see through walls and could in fact see chakra, an effect that was only made worse by the fact he could also sensor chakra due to his Sage Mode as now his senses were being totally overloaded.

In the end it had taken Naruto close to three weeks to get a handle on the eyes, even if it was just the basics like activating them and deactivating them. As well as handling their latent abilities like the ability to predict movements and ability to see through practically anything, he hadn't even tried to cast genjutsu with then yet. This in itself wasn't bad, as it made Naruto only more deadly than he already was. Which was both frightening and brilliant. Though she would be interested to see how he would develop once he learned how to cast eye based genjutsu.

But it did mean that Naruto hadn't been able to work for three weeks, which meant they had had to dip into their savings to pay for the room, and the food and drink. Which considering just how great Naruto's metabolism was, meant they ended up blowing through a large chunk of their savings. Living after all was by no means cheap, especially when you were having to rent out a room and eat out most nights.

Still they had eventually gotten back to work, the two of them pretty much working nonstop. Naruto wanting to master his new eyes as fast as he could, so that he could begin to hunt down larger prey. Which basically meant that he was feeling antsy and wanted to try his hand against stronger Shinobi, i.e. High A-class and S-class Shinobi.

It was because of this that Kin currently found herself crouched on the branch of a tree, her muscles feeling sore after having spent the last two weeks constantly taking on missions. All of which were part of a military campaign that they had been hired to assist with.

Naruto through his mercenary contacts at the Lusty Leopard had gotten them what at first had seemed like a pretty sweet gig. They had been hired alongside another few dozen mercenaries, bounty hunters, exiled Samurai etc. by the Daimyo of the Land of Woods to help him 'liberate' the Land of Woods from some kind of enemy Shinobi incursion. As apparently a group of mysterious Shinobi had been causing a ruckus and he had somehow found out and now wanted them gone.

Suffice to say when Kin had first heard of the mission, she had been excited. After all this might have given her some leads as to who had been the 'Master' of the Shinobi who had murdered her family and kidnapped her. So far though she had had no luck. The few enemy Shinobi she had managed to ensnare with her genjutsu had died before they talked. They had some kind of seal on their tongue that stopped them from giving away information, it was something that neither Kin nor Naruto knew what to do about. It had been frustrating for Kin, which had only made the weeks on nonstop fighting and missions even more annoying.

Mostly what she and Naruto did was protect the Daimyo's soldiers from the skilled Shinobi, who a Missing-nin who had worked with them had called 'Roots'. Apparently some former Konoha Black Ops group who were supposed to have been disbanded decades ago, but obviously hadn't.

Either way whilst Naruto, Kin and the others protected the main army, the Daimyo's elite group of chakra trained Samurai and normal soldiers methodically destroyed the Root bases with massive amounts of explosive notes. Naruto, Kin and the others taking on the Root Shinobi, whilst the rest of the army fought the bandits that the Root ANBU had stirred up and equipped.

Kin had to admit that the Root ANBU she had fought were skilled, more than once she had been put on the back foot. Having to struggle as she found herself fighting against multiple, quickly moving silent opponents. In the end though she always triumphed, her well-honed genjutsu skill allowing her to disorientate them long enough for her to strike them down with her tanto. Others amongst them though had not been so lucky, of the thirty odd mercenaries the Daimyo had hired at least twenty of them were dead now and another couple had left claiming the mission was too dangerous or not worth the money that was being offered.

Of course whilst Kin and the others struggled, Naruto did not seem to have the same problem. Bulldozing through any Root Shinobi stupid to get in his way. None of their attacks being able to keep up with his speed, durability and his new ability to predict attacks. His constant use of the eyes, which his unique healing factor had seemed to seamlessly assimilate had gotten so fluid he had become an almost unstoppable juggernaut.

Kin was soon broken out of her memories by the call of one of the Samurai that served in the Land of Forest's army. His sudden shout almost catching Kin by surprise as she had been stoically gazing out at the surrounding forest acting as one sentinels. A job Naruto had volunteered her for, claiming it would help fine tune her sensory skills. Of course what he had meant actually was that he didn't want to sit on a branch all day, and so had instead volunteered her to do so he wouldn't have to. Suffice to say she would get him back for this.

"Hey, Kin! Zaji wants to see you in the command tent, Naruto is already there." Suzaku shouted up to her, the brown haired Samurai not knowing the meaning of subtlety as he stood below the tree wearing his bulky green Samurai armour. Smiling up at her as he casually gave away her well-hidden position.

Rolling her eyes in irritation, Kin repressed the urge to snap at him. Knowing as she did that he didn't know any better and her taking out her irritation at her weariness on him wasn't fair. No that was what Naruto was there for. Though knowing the Sage he likely wouldn't notice or care, which took away most of the satisfaction, not all of it though.

"Thanks Suzaku, I'll go find Naruto and see what he wants." Kin replied as she rolled her shoulder again before she leapt down from her perch in the tree. Falling the fifteen feet to the leafy ground without a sound. After which she proceeded to sweep past Suzaku and into the camp, easily wending her way through the rows of tents and occasional patrols as she headed for the main tent in the centre of the camp where both Naruto and Zaji the commander of the Daimyo's army were waiting.

 **( - )**

 **(With Naruto)**

Grumbling irritably Naruto once again turned to look out of the tent, his amber eyes turning red as he activated his Doujutsu allowing him to see through the thick canvas and through another twenty or so tents. A slight smile passed across his face as he saw Kin approaching, his attractive partner confidently moving through the crowds and tents as she approached the command tent.

The girl was quite comfortably wearing a cuirass and right pauldron she had taken from a dead Samurai, over the top of her mesh undershirt and her black over shirt. Her now knee length silky black hair now plaited and fell down her back. Her tanto was still belted to her waist along with her kunai and senbon pouches. A confident look was also present on her face as she walked through the camp of older and more experience soldiers and Samurai, not at all daunted as she knew herself to be on the level or higher.

Cutting off his chakra to his eyes the glowing red colour faded to his usual amber colour, signifying that he was still using his Sage Mode. It appeared that even though he had replaced his eyes with those of another they were still a glowing amber, unless he activated his Doujutsu at which point they became a glowing red colour. This was no doubt due to the fact that the vulpine features, claws shaggy sliver hair and amber eyes were all features brought about by his constant use of Sage Mode and his connection to the Direwolf Clan through their Summoning Scroll. To the point at which it had permanently begun to mutate his body.

Not that Naruto was complaining, he always thought his amber eyes were badass. Far more striking than the baby blue colour they had been in his youth, before he had begun training to be a Sage. They certainly added to his intimidation factor, something that was useful when it came to corralling prey.

Turning back to Zaji, a very tall, heavy set Samurai in his early thirties, a mass of muscle and power clad in incredibly ornate sliver armour. Not that his size really bothered Naruto, as he instead gave the impatient looking army commander a bored look before saying. "She's just coming."

"Good." Zaji replied impatiently, not bothering to ask how Naruto knew. Naruto was an odd one, not that that bothered Zaji. As long as he could fight and obey orders that was all that mattered, and Naruto could surely fight the man was an absolute monster. Obeying orders though, he was not quite as good at that, still though as long as the Daimyo kept the money coming and Zaji phrased his commands the right way they made do.

Still though the man could be a pain in the arse, he refused to do solo missions and always insisted on bringing his partner Kin along. Not that that bothered Zaji, the girl was formidable in her own right plus she was a lot easier to deal with than the brusque and stubborn Naruto. The fact she was quite the looker was only a bonus, though considering he had seen Naruto rip a Shinobi's spine out with his bare hand he might keep that opinion to himself.

A minute or so later found Kin entering the command tent, sweeping past the two Samurai who guard the tent entrance without stopping. Instead she just walked up to where Naruto, Zaji and a couple of others were waiting around a table covered in maps. Idly sidling in next to Naruto, making sure to jam her elbow into his ribs as she did so. Not that Naruto showed any sign of noticing.

Instead he just gave her a faint smile his sharp canines just poking out from the bottom of his lips. A smile that grew when he saw the sour face Kin gave him, no doubt a bit pissed off that he had volunteered her to sentry duty. To be fair though he had wanted to sleep, whilst she had insisted on training. Kin having wanted to try and practice her genjutsu on someone with Doujutsu, even if the two of them didn't know the full capabilities of the ones Naruto now carried.

Normally Naruto would have humoured her, after all he always did love a good fight even if it was a spar. Unfortunately though he had just come back from a brutal mission and was looking forward to a nap. Hence the fobbing her off and making her sit on a branch staring out at the forest for three hours.

"So what's the new job?" Naruto asked bluntly, cutting straight to the chase now Kin was here. Already impatient to get on with it, he had rested and was now completely reenergized, and now Kin was here there was no more need to wait.

"Yes, one last job," Zaji said sending Naruto a sour look this time, after all it was his insistence on waiting for Kin that delayed them for five minutes. Still though he didn't see the point in getting into an argument over something so trivial. Especially with someone so prickly and stubborn.

"We are currently this close" Zaji continued as he held up two fingers not even an inch apart to signify just how close they were, "To purging those accursed Root Shinobi from the Land of Woods, thanks in no small part to you two. But their last base is heavily defended. Too heavily defended for any of my men, and probably even you two. That's why I've hired some more outside help for this one. He came highly recommended as a demolitions expert from a good friend. He should be joining us shortly."

With that said Zaji strode out of the tent, the others following him as it appeared he was going to meet this new hire.

Naruto's eyes narrowed as he heard how Zaji had hired more help, after all he was pretty confident he and Kin could deal with this last base. Still though as long as the Daimyo kept paying he would deal with it, after all this was just a job to him. He had not special connection to this country or these people, they were just clients and would remain so until the job was done.

A few moments later Naruto suddenly frowned, his eyes flashing red as he channeled chakra to them before turning around, his brow furrowing even further as he sensed something strange approaching. His sensory abilities courtesy of his Sage Mode were pretty considerable, not quite on a par with the Toad Sages from what Akela had told him, but far better than those of a normal sensor Shinobi.

The chakra he was currently sensing was unlike anything he had ever felt. It was clearly human in nature, but was shaped vaguely like a bird. A very large bird. This was an oddity in itself, especially since the chakra felt incredibly unstable.

Narrowing his eyes Naruto glanced up, his Doujutsu focusing on the large than normal mass of chakra approaching, allowing him to see that the new arrival was riding on top of some kind of bird. At first Naruto thought it could be a summon, or some similar creature but as it drew closer he began to doubt that it was a summon.

It didn't feel like a summon though Naruto did begin to think that the unstable chakra he could sense could very well be how this demolitions expert… well, demolished things.

Besides him Zaji and Kin followed Naruto's gaze as he looked up, the two of them only seeing an empty sky. A minute or so passed before a large hawk appeared out of the clouds, the bird continuing to grow as it approached them. The creature a startlingly white colour that stuck out against the backdrop of the light blue sky.

As the bird drew closer revealing its size and colour to the rest of the group, Naruto instead focused on the person who he both sensed and saw was riding atop the bird. It was a man, who looked to be around fourteen or fifteen years old, not much older than himself.

The teen had very long blonde hair that went halfway down his back, with one long bang covering the left side of his face. He was wearing a red coloured jacket over the top of a mesh shirt, with grey Shinobi pants and simple black sandals. Most notably to Naruto though was the Rock Shinobi forehead protector he was wearing, the symbol for the Rock Village having a line gouged into it, signifying that he was a Missing-nin, a rogue Shinobi.

As his ride descended the teen crossed his arms in front of him, a distinctly confident look on his face as the bird swooped lower to the ground. The look turning smug as he saw how many people in the camp were staring up at him in awe.

Naruto however just looked distinctly unimpressed, Kin who was by his side, shared his opinion. After all the teen might be a Missing-nin but neither of them had ever seen him in any of the Bingo Books, so he must either be very new or just not that important. Either way he had no right to look that confident. Not until he had made his way onto Naruto's list of soon to be prey, which nowadays only consisted of S-class Shinobi. Shinobi who he had not quite worked his way up to hunting yet.

The moment the bird came within hearing distance the teen called out, his voice loud and brash. "I'm here for the job, yeah. Are you Zaji?"

Naruto and Kin shared a look of amusement at that, it seemed the boy was confident, it would be interesting to see if he could prove that his confidence had merit.

"Indeed I am. Are you the Deidara that my friend recommended?" Zaji responded not at all bothered by the youth's brashness, after all he had to deal with cocky mercenaries all the time. The Land of Forest often branching out and hiring them, after all as a small Country their armed forces was only so big.

"Of course I am, yeah. So you decided to buy some of my art to cause some havoc? Smart move yeah." The newly introduced Deidara said as his 'art' continued to descend. Before with a cocky smirk Diedara stepped off of it and onto solid ground so he was now facing Naruto, Kin and Zaji.

"Art?" Kin spoke up a bemused expression on her face as she heard Diedara's manner of speaking.

"That's what my ninjutsu is, a noble and refined art." Deidara replied a large spreading across his face as he focused in on the pretty black haired girl, ignoring the others for now as he saw an opportunity to show off.

Holding his hand out he revealed a small clay spider that lay innocuously on his upturned palm, which oddly enough had a mouth embedded in it, teeth, tongue, and all. Much too all three of their surprise as the saw the mouth on his palm grin at them. "Look. Such refined lines, and a form that pursues two-dimensional deform. This is art! But that's not all there is to my art! My creations flow, yeah! Like this, it's simply molded clay. But my art explodes! And when it explodes it becomes sublime, and for the first time, the essence of my creation appears, yeah! That instant of sublimation is when true art can really exist! True art, is an EXPLOSION, yeah!"

Naruto blinked as he heard that before turning to look at Kin, the girl immediately interpreting his expression to say "I want to punch this little shit in the face." Seeing the look Kin shook her head before sending him a pointed expression of her own that he interpreted to say, "Man up and don't lose your temper with the weirdo."

"Now as much as I love explaining 'art' to the uneducated, we should probably have this schmuck leave so you can tell me what needs an artistic renovation yeah!" Deidara loudly, flamboyantly gesturing to Naruto as the uneducated in the room. Naruto's once amber eyes flashing with annoyance, even as his clawed hands curled into fists.

"The eye candy can stay though." Deidara unwisely tacked on, oblivious to Naruto growing temper.

Kin cocked an eyebrow as she heard that, quite amused to be referred to as eye candy. Though knowing she would be even more amused when Naruto lost his temper. After all whilst on a hunt or on a mission Naruto might be a cold, calm killer, when he wasn't as patient or as calm.

Zaji winced slightly as he heard Deidara's comment, warily eyeing Naruto as he did so. Luckily though the feral man seemed to be keeping his cool.

"Actually, Naruto here will be working with you, as will the girl, Kin. Your job Deidara will to be destroying the physical structure of this base." Zaji said as he gestured for the group to follow him into the tent, before he approached the map and pointed at the location of the Root Shinobi's last base. The others all following him, Kin and Naruto side by side and Deidara strutting forwards in front of them, apparently unconcerned about how he was coming across with his new allies. Instead he merely looked at the location of the base before glancing at a few rough sketches the scouts had managed to make of the parts of it they could see. The teen forgetting about his ego for the moment as he instead focused on the job at hand.

"Whilst you are doing that Naruto and Kin will be in charge of the personnel in the base. Can you three handle it?" Zaji continued looking between Deidara who was still looking at the maps on the table and Naruto who had seemed to have reigned himself in and was simply standing at the edge of the table a bored look on his face. Finally he glanced over at Kin who had also approached the table, where she had begun leafing through what information they had managed to gather on the enemy.

"I can, but I don't know about these punks, so don't come crying to me if they end up as an artistic smear on the ground yeah!" Deidara said offhandedly as he glanced away from the table, all the information now carefully filed away in his memories.

A look of dark amusement crossed over Naruto faces as he looked over at Deidara, his canines protruding from his mouth into an amused smirk. "If this fool can so much as scratch me with his 'art', I'll give him all the money I make for this job."

Deidara's lips quirked in amusement at that, a lazy look on his face as he looked Naruto up and down noting his large muscled form, feral features, sinister glowing amber eyes, claw like nails and the hilt of a sword he could see just poking out over his shoulder. Yes the man looked formidable, but he also looked like a common berserker. Deidara didn't rate Naruto's chances against his 'explosive art'.

Kin seeing the way the two were acting, just rolled her eyes muttering under her breathe "boys…"

"I'll take that as a yes." Zaji said carefully as he looked between the cocky looking Deidara, the exasperated looking Kin and the darkly amused Naruto. "I'll leave you to it. Remember though, if the job isn't finished, you won't get paid."

"Yeah yeah, no problem." Naruto said as he glanced over at Kin, the two sharing a look before he set off heading for the nearby woods, Kin quickly following after him.

Deidara scoffed as he saw the two run into the forest heading for the base. Shaking his head in amusement, before he once again mounted his clay bird and followed after them.

 **( - )**

 **(Within the Root Base)**

Torune would be frustrated, if Lord Danzo's harsh training hadn't removed all emotion from him. He had been sent to this backwoods country to quell a sudden move to oust Danzo's influence in this country. It should have only should have taken around fifty Root ANBU to stop the move by assassinating key figures in the government and military.

The Daimyo's army didn't even have a single Shinobi among them and barely one hundred Samurai. Most of the troops didn't even know how to use their chakra and the ones that did were weak and only used bastardized techniques that had been scavenged from the Shinobi Villages. Against a trained and experienced Shinobi the forces were paltry. After all Lord Danzo had ordered Torune and Fu to personally wipeout any powerful groups that could resist them, when they had first begun to extend the Root Organisation into the Land of Forests.

No, Lord Danzo's elite Root ninja were currently fighting Samurai, mercenaries and commons soldiers and worse still they were losing. While the Land of Forest's forces didn't have a single ninja, ryō was apparently no object to the surprisingly well funded country. So much so that they had hired Missing-nin and the like, to guard both the Daimyo and to assist in the assault n the Root forces.

Torune couldn't even be angry at the Missing-nin that the Land of Woods had hired, both because he literally couldn't and because even Missing-nin had to earn money. This of course did not translate to mercy when in combat. The mission comes first after all. And it was because of those same Missing-nin that Torune and fifty other Root Shinobi had been assigned to join the forces stationed in the Land of Forests on this pathetic little assignment in the middle of nowhere, when he would be of more use serving Lord Danzo back in the Hidden Leaf.

Torune had tried to muster the forces and just end this charade already so he could return to Lord Danzo's side, but they had apparently hired some rather competent Shinobi. So much so that a large chunk of Lord Danzo's forces had been wiped out and the Root's grip on the country was almost lost.

Still all was not lost yet, all it would take would be to kill the Missing-nin and then the rest would fall. To do that though he would have to contact Lord Danzo and request reinforcements. Something his master would not appreciate as he had already sent more Shinobi here than he had wanted too.

Torune was just thinking over how he could use the forces he still had to lure them out and into an ambush when the ceiling suddenly shook dust falling from the ceiling and cracks beginning to appear overhead.

Realizing that this either meant an enemy attack or an earthquake, Torune was forced to make a quick decision. If it was an enemy attack, they would want to stick to the base, but remaining underground during an earthquake would kill them all as surely as an army of enemy Shinobi.

Deciding that the rebels couldn't have the kind of firepower required to make him feel the shock several dozen feet below the earth, Torune quickly order his fellow Root members out of the subterranean base. As Torune arrived at the entrance to the Root's last base in the country, he noticed that the others had yet to exit the doors.

"What seems to be the issue?" Torune asked his voice coming out cold and monotone as he tried to determine what the issue was.

"Sir, one of the sensors detected several large chakra sources outside. We determined that they are the source of the tremors. Awaiting further orders." One of the more experienced Root members informed him, his tone of voice almost indistinguishable from Torune's a she turned to look emotionlessly at his captain.

Just as Torune was about to order the squads back to defensive positions to repel the enemies, the doors crashed inwards and crushed a couple of the less alert Root members. This left Torune down to only himself and ten other Root.

That being said Torune couldn't fully blame the two dead Root members for being crushed by the large metal doors. The doors had after all been reinforced by a Dual Iron Bar Seal, anyone capable of destroying them, even with repeated barrage was a not force to trifled with. The power and strength it would take to so easily brake through meant they were facing a potential S-class Shinobi.

Before the dust could clear, a black blur exploded forwards a set of glowing red eyes clearly visible through the cloud of dust. What followed next was a sudden swish of metal followed by a gurgle and a sudden thud. A spatter of blood hitting the Root ANBU as one of their number was instantly decapitated.

'Make that nine Root ANBU left.' Torune thought as despondently as someone without emotions can.

The other Root ANBU reacted instantly, three of them weaving through hand seals before bringing their hands to their mouth and sending forward a wave of fire at the entrance. The others all moving back and preparing for battle, taking note of the narrow corridor they were currently in.

Not that this did them any good as a figure suddenly barreled through the intense flames, seemingly not affect by them as he instead collided with the three Shinobi. A clawed hand tore the throat out of the first Shinobi, a blur of black metal cleaved another in two and the third Shinobi received a clawed foot in the middle of the chest. Shattering his ribs and pulverizing his organs. In a matter of moments all three of them were dead.

Torune seeing this calmly raised his fist before commanding his men to retreat back into the base, this was a powerful opponent. The Root Shinobi did not excel at facing powerful opponents straight on. They were trained to be true Shinobi after all, they were suited to fighting in the shadows using speed, skill and subtlety. The dark corridors deeper within the base would be much better terrain for them to face down and kill this new foe.

Torune himself also retreated deeper into the base, despite the fact that he knew that no matter how strong the individual was, one touch would be enough to end him. With that in mind Torune shed his gloves and shirt, his skin taking on a vibrant shade of purple, not exactly as stealthy as one would like for a profession based on sneaking around, but its effectiveness more than made up for it. One touch of the venomous insects crawling over his skin would put down any enemy. Of course its lack of subtlety didn't matter since if Torune had taken off his shirt and gloves, he wasn't trying to be stealthy. After all someone would need to bait the enemy deeper into the base and get them in a position that would allow his other troops to act. The time had come to die for the mission if needed.

Turning to retreat into the base, Torune and the six remaining Root ANBU didn't get far as a sudden low whistling sound could be heard. The sound invading their inner ear and manipulating their senses. Before they knew it the group found themselves instead of retreating deeper into the base, instead running back at the entrance.

"Wow, only thirteen enemy Shinobi! When Zaji said that this base was well defended, I thought he was serious." Their mystery attacker said as he stepped out of the settling dust cloud, a smaller figure visible jus the side of him, before with a blur it disappeared. "It's a shame I was looking forward to having a bit of fun." The man continued a vicious grin on his face, as Torune felt something rising up within him, that he had never thought he would feel again, fear.

Torune pushed that aside for now, instead pulsing his chakra and dispelling the genjutsu that had gotten them turned around. It was too late to retreat, as in the time it had taken for Torune to assess the situation and break the genjutsu their opponent had already moved. His body a blur as he shot forward, the ground cratering slightly under his feet as he appeared in the midst of the group. His glowing red eyes standing out in the darkness.

Reacting immediately two of the Root ANBU drew swords and slashed at him, one from either side. It was useless though as the silver haired warrior avoid both blades with supernatural ease, weaving between their rapid thrusts and lunges. As he was doing this one hand thrust out and closed around one of the Root Shinobi's heads, clamping shut like a voice and crushing his skull, a dull crack sounding as bone and mask alike broke. Whilst he was doing this, the blade in his other hand batted away his other opponents strike and continued on through his throat, killing him in an instant.

Grimacing Torune darted forward towards his opponent, his four remaining subordinates at his side. That is of course until a high pitched whistle sounded, upon hearing it Torune immediately fluctuated his chakra leaping to the sealing and attaching to it as he covered his ears with his hands.

The other Root Shinobi were not so quick on the uptake, all four Shinobi found their muscles seizing up freezing their movements for a moment, making them stumble forwards. Before any of them could recover, a smaller figure detached themselves from the side of the darkened corridor. A lithe girl, with long black hair and a slight smile on her face as she darted forwards, a tanto in her hand as she hamstrung three of the Shinobi before they even had a chance to recover.

Her body low to the floor as she swept around, her tanto flashing again as it slit one of the Shinobi's throats and dug into the side of another's forehead. The girl pulling the blade out as she rolled to the floor avoiding a barrage of kunai from one of the now recovered Shinobi, and a blast of condensed water from the hamstrung Shinobi.

Falling from the ceiling, Torune aimed to take the girl out whilst she was distracted. The wind whistling in his ears as he descended on her, his hand closing around the back of her before he used both his physical strength and momentum to slam her head into the ground. Or at least he thought he did, until her body dispersed into mist and a sudden gurgling sound made him look up.

The hamstrung Shinobi fell to the ground, a red smiled opened up on his throat. The girl standing behind her bloody tanto in hand as she looked down at the surprised Torune.

"Another genjutsu." Torune muttered his tone empty as he stood back up a look of faint irritation on his face as he stood up, falling into a ready fighting stance.

The other remaining Root ANBU also fell into a fighting stance, a tanto held in his hand.

"Take the girl." Torune said to his companion before he turned away to face off against the amused looking man.

Torune ran at his opponent as the other Root member moved at the same time, heading for the confident looking girl. As he charged in Torune noticed that the man glanced over his shoulder, a slight smirk on his face as he made the mistake of looking over at the Root ANBU charging his companion, taking his eyes off of Torune in the process.

'The last mistake he'll ever make.' Torune thought to himself as he rapidly got in close and went to punch his opponent across the exposed skin of the face, releasing his swarm of venomous bugs in the process. Instead of the fist making contact though, the silver haired man reached up and caught the punch in a palm that didn't give an inch. His sharp nails piercing Torune's skin, and his grip crack the bones in Troune's hand.

As well as the sudden feeling of pain what truly startled Torune was the fact that his opponent hadn't looked in his direction at all.

"Somehow I expected more. I mean you are the one giving the commands are you not. I would have thought that the leader of the group would be the most dangerous one." The silver haired man said, a faint note of his appointment in his voice as he turned his glowing red eyes onto Torune. His sword held lazily at his side.

As he saw the glowing red eyes, Torune felt another shiver of fear. Those eyes, it was like they could see through him. Jus the feeling he got form the made him know that they weren't natural. Still though that didn't matter, what did was that he had made contact with the man's flesh, the man was already dead, he just didn't know it yet.

"Ah well, might as well finish it- Wait what!" The feral looking man said in surprise as he looked at his hand.

Torune grinned as he saw that his opponent wasn't wearing gloves. Even among the Aburame, Torune had been unique. He commanded a swarm of microscopic insects that inhabited his body. Through physical contact, he could 'infect' his opponents with these insects, which were poisonous to everyone but himself. The insects would feed off the chakra of their opponents like regular parasitic insects, but the poison the bugs released was what killed them far faster than chakra exhaustion. The poison would take longer to spread if it started in the hand, and the limb could be amputated to remove the poison but Torune had more or less won. Still, one didn't become one of Lord Danzo's most trusted by taking risks and assuming things. Torune swept out his tanto for a quick slice to the neck for the kill.

His tanto made clean contact, but somehow failed to penetrate the skin. Not only that, the tanto shattered as if it were made of glass. An amused look crossing the man's face, his eyes becoming an amber colour as he released Torune's hand and watched him jump back.

His opponent's eyes became red once again and suddenly flashed with glee and challenge as he lashed out with his infected fist. Driving his closed fist into Torune's stomach and sending him staggering backwards. Rather than follow through with his strike, the now red eyed man then stared at his left hand in interest, an act which surprised Torune he had been expecting horror and a sudden realization of impending doom. Torune had won after all.

Then the strangest thing began to happen. The purple skin on the man's hand began to turn stone gray from the original point of contact and quickly spread, overtaking the microscopic insects. The poison had only spread halfway up the forearm before it stopped entirely. The silver haired man idly shaking his gray hand, breaking a thin layer of actual stone that had formed over his left hand and forearm. The interest on his face turning into a smirk as the man looked up at Torune, smirking as the Root ANBU took a couple of steps backwards.

"I take it you didn't know? Absorbing Natural Energy is dangerous for those untrained in its use." Torune's opponent said as he absentmindedly as he brought his attention back to him. A smile passing over his face as he slashed his sword through the air before he darted forwards. Not pausing for a second as he crossed the distance between them in moments.

Luckily, Torune managed to use the Replacement Technique to switch with a log, the wood shattering into splinters of wood as the man tore through it. Not pausing for a second as he unerringly found Torune, charging forward and engaging the Aburame in close combat. As he did so Torune unleashed his entire swarm, using the chakra eating bugs as a distraction as he control them and made them swarm his attacker.

Now any normal Shinobi would try all the harder to overcome this foe, but Shinobi trained as Root ANBU weren't governed by their emotions. Torune knew when to cut his losses and inform Lord Danzo of his discoveries. Torune performed the Body Flicker Technique to put as much distance between himself and the much stronger rogue Shinobi that had attacked the base and butchered the rest of Torune's team. He had put enough distance between himself and the base that he felt safe tree jumping instead of using the Body Flicker. He was glad, the Body Flicker was known to aggravate injuries received after all he had a number of broken bones and damaged organs from fighting that monster of a Shinobi.

Torune didn't even wait long enough to see his fellow Root Shinobi cut down like a dog, the man's female opponent idly cleaning her blade as she stood over his dead body. Nor did he see the flash of irritation that passed through the silver haired man's eyes as he fought through the swarm of toxic chakra eating bugs.

No instead Torune leapt into the surrounding forest, swiftly moving from tree to tree. As he did so he was surprised to notice a large, white spider on one of the tree limbs he jumped past. Almost as if it responded to him noticing it, the spider jumped from its perch and latched onto his face. Right before the spider exploded, Torune heard the last words he would ever hear. "With this, become art! Katsu!"

 **( - )**

 **(A few minutes later)**

An amused smirk passed of Deidara's face as he looked down at the last of the Root Shinobi. The one who had tried to flee only to have his head blown to pieces by his art. Looking up from the man's ruined remains, he instead looked over at the shattered remains of the enemy's base. The underground bunker now fully exposed, courtesy of his bombardment of explosives.

Looking over at the shattered entrance to the bunker, he saw Kin and Naruto leaving the base, the two of them having likely wiped out all of the Shinobi taking refuge within. As it turned out the two of them weren't as hopeless as he had initially thought. Of course in the end they still needed his help to kill the one that tried to get away. But still they were decent enough. Even if their fighting styles were crude and artless, they got the job done and in the end that was all that matters. Who knows he might let them tag along on his next job.

Stepping of his flying clay bird as it descended to the ground. Deidara smirked slightly as he saw the other two approaching. "Not bad for a single days hard work yeah!?"

Naruto cocked an eyebrow as he heard that, before shrugging. "I was expecting a bit more excitement."

"I think we've had enough excitement for the last few weeks. Now our job here is finished can't wait to get back to some normal bounty hunting." Kin spoke up, sheathing her tanto and move so she was walking directly besides Naruto.

"It wasn't that bad." Naruto replied, his tone softer than when he spoke to Deidara, a note of fondness in it.

"For you it wasn't, you love roughing it in the wilds. Me, I prefer a bit of comfort now and then." Kin replied a sour look on her face as she saw Naruto send her a grin.

"Well if you two love birds are finished let's head back to the camp and inform them of our success." Deidara spoke up, an amused smirk on his face as he saw the both of them give him irritated looks.

"Fine then, but you are going to give us a lift on your pigeon." Naruto said brusquely, making it clear that Deidara had no choice in the matter.

"It's not a pigeon it is a hawk, you cretin." Deidara snapped back.

"Really?" Kin asked, furrowing her brow.

"Yes!" Deidara snapped back.

"Think you might need some art lessons." Naruto replied bluntly, as he swept passed Deidara.

"Fuck you!" Deidara cursed, as he saw both Kin and Naruto mounting the clay hawk. Getting on It himself, as he willed it to lift off and begin flying them back to the armies camp. Before they could fully take off though, the bird exploded. All three of them leaping off before the bird exploded.

Naruto scowled as he crashed onto the ground, his eyes narrowed as he instantly locked on the incredibly powerful chakra source that suddenly appeared in his vicinity. It appeared with no warning, like one minute it wasn't there, then the next it was.

It was a man, a striking one at that. Who the moment he showed himself caught the attention of all three of them. He had orange hair that blew slightly in the wind and dozens of black piercings across his face and arms. The other striking thing about him was the cloak he wore. It went from a high collar down to his ankles, colored black accented by blood red clouds on the outside while the inside was the same colour as the clouds.

The man's sheer presence was overwhelming. Even Naruto who was very confident in his skills and ability knew that he couldn't take this man on right here and now. At least not until he knew just who and what he would be going up against. There was just something about him that inspired dread, as Naruto straightened himself, his sword in hand. He sensed Kin appear next to him, the girl obviously picking up some of the same thing Naruto was, though maybe not to the same degree. Either way she obviously knew she was out of her depth.

"Who are you?" Naruto asked bluntly, squaring himself as he moved so he was just shielding Kin. His amber eyes flashing to red as he activated his Doujutsu, almost immediately being taken aback as he saw the sheer power this man exuded. Being able to see it, was a lot more intense than just being able to feel it.

The orange haired man looked Naruto in the eyes as he heard that, revealing to Naruto for the first time the purple ripples that his eyes seemed to be made of. The eyes radiating with so much power, that for Naruto it looked like the man had two suns in his skull. It seemed the source of the man's power might be a set of Doujutsu.

"I am god. I am the one who will bring peace to this pathetic world. I am Pain." The man introduced himself, his voice deep, catching their attention immediately. While the man's claim to be god was ridiculous, something about the way he carried himself and the power he exuded made Naruto wary. "I am the leader of a group known as Akatsuki, comprised of a select group of powerful individuals. We cooperate for our own purposes, but my ultimate goal is to bring peace to this world. I am offering the two of you a place within the organization." Pain continued in a tone that brokered no argument.

Naruto's eyes narrowed as he heard that. "And how would you go about doing that?"

"Peace shall be achieved through the Jinchuuriki, or more specifically, the Tailed Beasts. Akatsuki shall hunt them down and capture, before controlling them to create an era of peace." Pain said with absolute conviction in his tone. "Will you stand alongside us?"

"So you are hiring people to hunt down Jinchuuriki?" Naruto asked in interest, ignoring the fact that he himself was one. After all his constant use of Sage Mode allowed him to complete mask the Bijuu sealed within him. Instead he focused on the chances this opportunity held, if he took this 'Pain' up on his offer.

"Yes, now will you join me?" Pain asked, his ringed purple eyes locked on Naruto's own.

 **( - )**

 **AN: So things are really moving now eh? I hope you all like the chapter, I had the first part of the chapter done quite early, the latter part was a bit more difficult. Luckily though I got it back on track.**

 **At the moment I am working on the next chapter of Dead Man Walking. I am in the midst of the chapter, so I am making good progress. I can't tell you exactly when I will update, but it will hopefully be before Christmas.**

 **SO what do you all think, would love to hear from you all so please leave a comment or a review.**

 **See you all later.**

 **Seagate.**


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Well happy New Year everyone! I finally managed to get an update out for this story and I hope you all enjoy it and leave a review or comment at the end. I currently have been writing a number of other stories, check them out if you want, recently and am somewhat on a roll so I will try to keep it up.**

 **Hope you all enjoy my longest chapter yet.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

 **( - )**

 **(Last Time)**

 _"Who are you?" Naruto asked bluntly, squaring himself as he moved so he was just shielding Kin. His amber eyes flashing to red as he activated his Doujutsu, almost immediately being taken aback as he saw the sheer power this man exuded. Being able to see it, was a lot more intense than just being able to feel it._

 _The orange haired man looked Naruto in the eyes as he heard that, revealing to Naruto for the first time the purple ripples that his eyes seemed to be made of. The eyes radiating with so much power, that for Naruto it looked like the man had two suns in his skull. It seemed the source of the man's power might be a set of Doujutsu._

 _"I am god. I am the one who will bring peace to this pathetic world. I am Pain." The man introduced himself, his voice deep, catching their attention immediately. While the man's claim to be god was ridiculous, something about the way he carried himself and the power he exuded made Naruto wary. "I am the leader of a group known as Akatsuki, comprised of a select group of powerful individuals. We cooperate for our own purposes, but my ultimate goal is to bring peace to this world. I am offering the two of you a place within the organization." Pain continued in a tone that brokered no argument._

 _Naruto's eyes narrowed as he heard that. "And how would you go about doing that?"_

 _"Peace shall be achieved through the Jinchuuriki, or more specifically, the Tailed Beasts. Akatsuki shall hunt them down and capture, before controlling them to create an era of peace." Pain said with absolute conviction in his tone. "Will you stand alongside us?"_

 _"_ _So you are hiring people to hunt down Jinchuuriki?" Naruto asked in interest, ignoring the fact that he himself was one. After all his constant use of Sage Mode allowed him to complete mask the Bijuu sealed within him. Instead he focused on the chances this opportunity held, if he took this 'Pain' up on his offer._

 _"_ _Yes, now will you join me?" Pain asked, his ringed purple eyes locked on Naruto's own_.

 **( - )**

 **Chapter 5**

 **( - )**

 **(In the Land of Forests)**

Letting out a slight sigh Naruto brought a bottle of rice wine up to his lips and took a long swig, his face scrunching up at the taste of the alcohol. Putting the bottle down on the table in front of him, he then slid it over to Kin, who like him grabbed the bottle and took a drink, her own reaction somewhat milder than Naruto's due to her senses not being as sharp.

"So what are you going to do?" Kin asked as she handed the bottle back to Naruto, a curious expression on her face as she referred to the invitation they had received earlier that day. "Are you going to join up with those Akatsuki guys? Or tell them to go fuck themselves?"

Naruto snorted in amusement at that, absentmindedly picking the bottle up again. Not drinking from it this time though, instead merely toying around with the bottle. Not really paying attention to much else.

Currently the two of them were sat in a bar in Nagasota, the Capital City of the Land of Forests. All around them there were dozens of soldiers, all of them celebrating, cheering and drinking, toasting their victorious campaign against the Root Shinobi. The journey back from the military camp after the fall of the last base had been swift, especially for Kin and Naruto, who as Shinobi could far outpace normal people. Even now twelve hours later there were still soldiers returning from the camp and likely would be for several hours to come.

The two of them had originally come to Nagasota to collect the money owed to them for services rendered, a million ryo enough money to comfortably live off for a year or so. Normally after collecting the money from their client, or the Daimyo's treasurer in this case, they would be off. Naruto not liking being in overly crowded cities, usually preferring small towns, rural villages or woodlands, quieter places where his senses would not be overwhelmed by the noise and stench of humanity. With Kin happily accompanying him, preferring his company to that of anyone else, plus having grown up in a small logging camp she too was not entirely comfortable with big cities.

This time however they had chosen to remain within the city, finding a small bar in one of the seedier parts of the settlement they had set up camp. Kin ordering some food and drinks as they monopolized a table in the corner of the room. Ignoring the revelries of the returning soldiers as they instead focused on the issues at hand.

Earlier that day, just after the destruction of the final Root base. Naruto, Kin and another Shinobi, Deidara, a brash and obnoxious Missing-nin who had been working with them, had been given an offer. A man by the name of Pain had approached them, offering them a position in his organisation, the Akatsuki. An organisation that was apparently formed of S-rank Shinobi and whose purpose was primarily to hunt down and capture Jinchuuriki, all in the quest of reaching some kind of 'true peace', as if that ever actually existed.

According to their brief conversation with Pain, members of the organisation in return for their compliance were offered anything they wanted, whether it be money, research material, literally anything they wanted they were given. All they had to do was fulfil the missions given to them, whether that be taking on high paying jobs to build up the Akatsuki's finances or hunt down and capture Jinchuuriki, all for some as of yet unknown reason. Though judging by what they had seen of Pain so far, it would not be pleasant for the Jinchuuriki.

When Kin had first heard the offer she had assumed that Naruto would take it up immediately. After all Naruto was all about the hunt, he loved hunting down and fighting powerful opponents, using them as a benchmark to test his strength. On top of that he would be able to continue his bounty missions and mercenary work, only this time he would have the support of an organisation of S-rank Shinobi at his back. This group seemed like something Naruto would be happy to be a part of, even if only for a while.

Instead though Naruto hadn't replied at first, instead simply stating that he had to collect his payment for the mission. Hearing that Kin had been worried that this Pain man, the Shinobi who proclaimed himself a god would kickoff.

After all the man hadn't looked like the patient type. Which considering the sheer amount of power he emitted, more than even Naruto, would probably not work out well for them. Yes, just being in his presence Kin had come to the conclusion that as they were now neither teen stood much of a chance of beating Pain, not even if they worked together. Plus on the off chance that they did beat him, they would then have an organisation of –rank Shinobi after their heads.

Surprisingly though in response to Naruto's statement, Pain had only nodded his head, before emotionlessly telling them that they could collect their payment and then he would expect an answer the next day. The way he had said it though gave Kin no illusions about just what answer he expected.

This was why they were here, hidden away in a dark and shady bar, drinking, because tomorrow they knew that Naruto would have to give Pain his answer. Their other companion Deidara he had not been anywhere near as cautious as the other two. After hearing just a brief description of what the group was about he had signed up, declaring it an opportunity to hone his skills and show the world just what true art was.

Pausing for a second after hearing Kin's question, Naruto eventually replied, a slight frown etched on his face as he turned to look at her. His amber eyes trailing down Kin's lithe form before coming to rest on her face, looking into her eyes as he simply shrugged. "I'm not sure."

Kin paused as she heard that, a look of concern passing across her face. In the time she had known Naruto he had never once shown a moment of doubt. He was always sure of himself, making decisions quickly and then sticking with it come what may. That was one of the things she respected most about Naruto, his conviction, once he had decided on something he would never falter.

Kin was proof enough of that, Naruto had decided to take her on as a companion, and not once in all the time they had spent together had he shown any doubts on his decision. Even when Kin had lost her temper at him, or had made a mistake. Once in one of her weaker moments she had asked him why this was, why he didn't just ditch her, after all he was without a doubt strong enough to do whatever he wanted, with her only acting as a burden.

In response he had only said that she was a member of his pack. That was all he had said, but the sheer conviction with which he had said it, well she had known then and there that she would never leave him no matter what. As she could tell he would never do the same to her.

It was because of this that she was so concerned, as since he had been given the offer Naruto had not been as decisive as usual. For one reason or another Pain's offer had caused him to worry and she didn't like seeing him worry.

"Why? I would have thought this was something you would really want, you would have the chance to hunt down some of the strongest Shinobi around?" Kin replied, trying to find out what had him so concerned.

"That's true." Naruto replied with a nod of his head, putting the bottle down and absentmindedly looking around, noticing as he did that there was a large circle of space around them. Naruto's baleful presence having scared off any revelers.

Kin waited for a moment and when it didn't look like Naruto was going to continue she rolled her eyes. "So what's the problem then? Why are you so concerned?" Kin pressed, her dark eyes on Naruto, noticing as she did that his own amber eyes had shifted to a glowing red showing that he was now using his Doujutsu for some reason.

Glancing around the room, Naruto then turned his attention back to Kin. A strange expression on his face as he considered what he would say next. As he was doing this he was thinking himself about just what he would do. A part of him wanted to join the Akatsuki, he could hone his skills tracking down Jinchuuriki plus fighting the Village Shinobi who would no doubt try and protect their prized weapons. On top of that it would give him an opportunity to check out some S-rank Shinobi, allowing him to assess their skills in case he ever decided he wanted to fight them. Already he could feel his blood pumping faster at the very thought, ever since he had first left the Black Forest and heard of the existence he had wanted to track down and fight an S-rank Shinobi. The strongest of the strong.

On the other hand though he was a Jinchuuriki himself, although the Nine Tails presence was fully masked by his constant usage of Sage Mode that didn't stop him from being what he was. This meant that if the Akatsuki were capturing the Tailed Beasts, then they would need the Nine Tails and Naruto was not about to let himself be captured. This meant that if Naruto did join the Akatsuki he would be in constant danger of being discovered.

This gave Naruto two options, the first was that he could join the Akatsuki and track down other Jinchuuriki, honing his skill as he did so all the while hiding his own status as a Jinchuuriki. With his abilities Naruto was very confident that he could hide the existence of the Nine Tails, and if anyone ever did find out by then he hopefully would be strong enough and knowledgeable enough about the other members by then to kill them if they threatened him or Kin. That was his first option, his second option was to reject the offer entirely and hope for the best.

If he did that he strongly suspected that Pain wouldn't accept his rejection and would attack him and try to kill him. After all the Akatsuki were going after the Tailed Beasts, the creatures were incredibly powerful weapons wielded by the most powerful of the Shinobi Villages. It was likely that this Pain would want to keep his group's existence a secret for as long as he could before revealing himself. This meant that there could be no loose end so either Pain would try to force Naruto into joining or he would attempt to silence him.

At the moment Naruto knew he would lose if he faced off with Pain. Naruto wasn't exactly sure why but something about the man worried him, it wasn't just the sheer amount of power he exuded no it was those eyes he had. Just looking into them Naruto knew he would not be able to defeat the man, not yet, not until he knew more about his abilities.

Not that Naruto was about to voice these concerns out loud, after all he was being watched and had been since he had left Pain's presence. He didn't know what it was but something was watching him, his Doujustu had picked them up. What they were though he had no idea, it didn't look human but nor did it look or feel like anything he had ever seen before. Even now as he and Kin sat here drinking he knew the creature was watching them, potentially listening into their conversation.

More than that whatever it was would likely report everything it had seen and heard to Pain meaning Naruto would have to watch what he says. Which was something Naruto didn't like doing at all, still for the sake of Kin and himself he had to do it.

Letting out a sigh Naruto knew his only real choice for the moment was to adapt and survive. His decision made Naruto turned to look at Kin, a slight smile tugging its way across his face as he noted the well concealed concern on the girl's face, shaking his head Naruto finally replied. "I don't like the idea of joining, but somehow I don't think we have much of a choice."

"You picked up on that too did you?" Kin replied dryly, taking the bottle from Naruto and having another swig. "I say we join up, make a ton of money and then get out when we can."

"You're saying that like you think they will let us leave." Naruto replied in amusement almost certain that this is the kind of group that one does not simply leave. Not that it would stop Naruto from trying if he found he didn't like it.

Kin shrugged at that, not sure what else to say. She couldn't really see a major problem with joining up, it would give a bit more purpose to their lives than just roaming around the different countries taking mercenary jobs and hunting bounties. Then again she knew that joining up would mean there would now be some restrictions on them, as although they would be able to do as they pleased, they would be assigned missions occasionally that they would have no choice but to take. She knew that that would grate on both her and Naruto. Still to Kin it seemed that the pros outweighed the cons, or at least they did at the moment.

Before anything else could be said between them they were interrupted by the unwelcome sight of Deidara walking into the bar. The blonde haired teen now wearing a knee length black cloak with red clouds on it as he swaggered forwards, his long blonde hair standing out against the darkness of his outfit.

Looking around the room as he entered Deidara quickly locked on to where Naruto and Kin were sitting, a smirk passing across his face at the sight of his two former companions. Turning Deidara began to approach them, ignoring the scowl on Naruto's face as he instead waltzed forward and took a seat on their table without a care in the world.

"So still sulking in here yeah!" Deidara said a grin on his face as he looked over at Naruto, before turning to look at Kin. "Ever think about ditching the savage and hooking up with a real man?"

Kin rolled her eyes as she heard that, easily shrugging off Deidara's clumsy attempt at flirting. He was not the first guy to try it on, over her time travelling with Naruto a number of men had tried it on with her. Most of them only tried it once. "Tell me Deidara have you ever seen a man be beaten to death with his own spinal cord?"

Deidara frowned as he heard that, a look of confusion passing across his face. "What no, why did you ask something like that?"

Kin smiled sweetly as she heard that, her louder than normal comment having attracted the attention of more than Deidara as a number of other patrons looked over at her. Noticing her dark eyes, pale flawless skin, raven coloured knee length hair, and sharp striking features. "Because the last guy to try it on with me… well the last time a guy attempted anything untoward with me, Naruto ripped his spine out and flayed him to death with it…"

Deidara paused as he heard that, his one visible eye widening slightly as he looked over at Naruto remembering as he did the man's monstrous strength as he tore through a solid metal door and ripped skilled Shinobi to pieces with his clawed hands. The man was a literal Juggernaut, an unstoppable killing machine. Not someone Deidara would want to fight, especially since he suspected that only his most destructive of techniques would affect Naruto.

Seeing the suddenly wary look Deidara was sending him Naruto sent him a grin, revealing his unusually sharp canines and glowing red eyes as he did so.

Deidara flinched slightly as he looked into those red eyes, almost as unnerved by them as he had been by Pain's ringed purple eyes. "Yeah… well I was only being friendly…"

Kin smiled as she heard that enjoying the sudden nervousness the usually brash young man was showing. She always enjoyed playing this game on people, especially the over confident ones. As of yet Naruto had never needed to step in and kill someone for flirting with her, after all she was more than capable of looking after herself. Still it didn't hurt to put up a façade, after all if people thought she needed Naruto to protect her well then they would never suspect it when she slit their throat from behind.

That being said Deidara probably already knew she was strong, after all they had just worked together earlier that day. Still she could try and play around with his male ego, so many men liked to think of women as weaker and meeker than them, those men wouldn't last long in a fight with a Kunoichi.

"So what are you doing here Deidara?" Naruto spoke up, a hint of amusement in his voice as he watched Kin have her fun. He knew more than most just how deadly a women could be, Akela did not become the leader of the Direwolf Clan just through her sparkling personality. No she had won her positon through strength, cunning and pure ferocity and this was the same reason she had remained in power for centuries now.

"Can't I drop by and chat to old friends?" Deidara replied an easy smile passing across his face, his previous wariness forgotten as he reached out to take the bottle of rice wine from Kin. Only for the girl to take a long swig from it, a grimace passing across her face as she downed the bottle. Before with a smirk she handed it over to Deidara.

"Yeah I wouldn't say we were friends." Kin spoke up the grimace on her face fading as she instead just smirked at the slightly peeved expression on Deidara's face as he dropped the empty bottle onto the dirt floor.

"And there I was thinking we made a good team." Deidara replied a slightly whiny note in his voice.

"What's with the getup?" Naruto suddenly asked, his question blunt and to the point cutting through Kin and Deidara's sniping.

"Well what do you think it is? They're my Akatsuki robes, yeah!" Deidara replied with a smirk, casually brushing some none existent dust from the shoulder.

"They're a bit tacky don't you think?" Kin spoke up a slight frown on her face as she leant forward and looked at what Deidara was wearing.

"Hn! Well I think they look cool yeah!" The Missing-nin replied sending Kin a slight scowl.

"You look like a clown." Naruto said brusquely, before forging on as he saw Deidara open his mouth to respond. "What are you doing here Deidara?"

Deidara paused here a contemplative expression crossing his face as he thought about what to say. "Pain sent me. He knows you have collected your bounty and he wants an answer from you."

Naruto nodded at that, having suspected that much already. No doubt their little stalker had been keeping Pain abreast of just what they were doing, probably so that Pain would know if they tried to run. "Where is he?"

Deidara stood up from his chair at that, straightening his robes before looking down on Naruto with a smirk. "He's outside the city, you're to come to him at once and give him your decision."

Naruto nodded at that, pushing himself to his feet his back cracking as did so. Before he turned and grabbed his sword from where it had been resting on the floor. "Might as well get this over with then."

Deidara nodded at that, his smirk dimming slightly as he glanced at the sword in Naruto's hand. "I take it you aren't planning on fighting?"

Naruto cocked an eyebrow as he heard that, surprised to sense genuine concern in Deidara's comment. "Why you worried about me?"

Kin looked over at Naruto at that, a slight frown on her face as she heard the slight hint of surprise in his voice. Anyone else would likely miss it, but over the months Kin had become very much attuned to Naruto's emotions and something Deidara had said surprised him.

Deidara scoffed in response, "As if, though if you are going to try anything I would suggest you don't. This guy is beyond either of us, he is the real deal. I'm talking ridiculously powerful here, and that's coming from me the former apprentice of the Tsuchikage!"

"You were the Tsuchikage's former apprentice?" Kin suddenly asked disbelievingly, looking him up and down an amused expression on her face.

"Hn! Yeah of course!" Deidara said a grin on his face as he misinterpreted Kin's disbelief for intrigue.

Seeing this Naruto rolled his eyes, instead walking forwards and passing by Deidara, Kin moving so she was alongside him. This left Deidara behind for a moment, before with a shout he ran after them trying to keep up.

"So what do you reckon of that Deidara guy?" Naruto asked curiously, a slightly unfamiliar feeling bubbling up in him as he and Kin continued through the crowds of soldiers. People making way for Naruto intimidating presence of Naruto before closing back in. Allowing Naruto and Kin to move much more swiftly through the city than Deidara who had to fight through the crowded streets, shouting the occasionally obscenity.

A look of confusion passed across Kin's face as she heard this. "The guy's a tool, but he's also a skilled Shinobi. I reckon he would be a slippery one to kill if we have to, but not hard once we neutralise those flying, exploding clays things he uses."

Naruto nodded at that having come to the same conclusion. Before they could say anymore the Shinobi in question caught up with them. Deidara having had to use his chakra to run up and along the walls, bypassing the crowds and allowing him to catch up with Naruto and Kin just before the main gates.

Barely giving him a glance Naruto passed through the gates, Deidara and Kin following him as he mentally prepared himself for his meeting with Pain.

 **( - )**

 **(Outside of the City)**

Pain as it soon appeared had been waiting for them in a small grove not far outside of Nagasota, a blank emotionless expression on his face as he stood in the centre of the grove the wind whipping at his Akatsuki robes. His ringed purple eyes locked on Naruto as he, Kin and Deidara entered the grove, the three of them slowly approaching the silent yet still intimidating figure of Pain.

Coming to a stop a few feet away from Pain, Naruto watched as Deidara walked past him and went to stand just to the side and behind the leader of the Akatsuki. Seeing this Naruto then shifted his attention onto Pain, his eyes narrowing slightly as he did so.

"So do you accept my offer of membership into the Akatsuki?" Pain said getting straight to the point, his deep voice completely empty of any emotion and his purple eyes boring in Naruto's.

"Well I'm not an S-rank so wouldn't that be a problem." Naruto replied, a curious expression on his face as he tried to figure this Pain guy out.

"You are an S-rank in everything but name." Pain said bluntly, his expression still stoic. "Will you accept my offer?"

 _'_ _Offer'_ , Naruto thought in amusement, before he shook the thought out of his head and instead just nodded his head. "We'll join your little group, for now."

Pain stared at Naruto at that, before his gaze moved away from him and instead fixed on Kin. "The offer was for you, not for her."

"Well here's the thing, we're a team, so you either accept both of us, or you get neither of us." Naruto replied bluntly, this was something he would not compromise on.

Pain's expression didn't change as he heard this. "Very well."

Naruto cocked an eyebrow at that, his hands clenching into fists, even as he tensed up. He wasn't sure what Pain was thinking, but if it came down to a fight he wouldn't go down meekly. He would give it everything he had, using his Sage Mode, Doujutsu, swordsmanship, taijutsu and Summons to the maximum. If it came down to a fight Naruto may not win, but neither would Pain, as if he did lose Naruto would make sure to rip the man's head off before he died.

If Pain noticed any of this he didn't show it, instead he just continued speaking. "You may both join, however she will remain with you, you will count as one member within this organization."

Naruto frowned in confusion as he heard that, why would it matter if there was another member in the organization and why did he phrase it like he had. Naruto was completely unable to read this man, he displayed no outer emotion and his Sage enhanced sensory abilities were able to pick up nothing from the man. Well nothing expect the insane amount of Chakra that was flowing through him, the chakra being based around Pain's eyes and the black piercings that covered his body.

Glancing sideways, Naruto met Kin's gaze. The girl in question giving Naruto a slight nod as she took a step closer to him. Looking back over to Pain, Naruto unclenched his fists, before he nodded his head. "Very well then, we'll join the Akatsuki."

Pain nodded at that, his expression once again not changing. Deidara meanwhile gave Naruto and Kin a grin and a thumbs up.

Glancing at the two Naruto's expression remained stoic as he began to make plans about what to do next, and how he would deal with being in the Akatsuki.

 **( - )**

 **(A few years later in Konoha)**

It was day like any other in the Hidden Leaf village, the streets were busy as off duty Shinobi and civilians milled about, shopping and chatting and generally enjoying their lives. The place was idyllic, and had been for more than a decade now. The Hidden Leaf as it stood now, was the strongest of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, an enviable positon, but one they clung onto despite the stiff competition from the most powerful competitors the Hidden Cloud and Hidden Rock Villages.

Currently Iruka Umino, a Chunin in his mid-twenties, was in the Shinobi Academy, doing his duty as a teacher for the up-and-coming Shinobi of the future. The next generation of Shinobi who like their parents would go onto to represent Konoha on the world stage.

Now Iruka was one of the few Shinobi that was entirely content with where he was in life. He had achieved the rank of Chunin at the age of sixteen and a few years after that had gone on to become a teacher to the next generation of Shinobi in the Hidden Leaf Village. This had taken him of the career track of course, the lack of fieldwork involved making it all but impossible for him to rise from a Chunin to a Special Jounin or a full Jounin. Still this wasn't a concern to Iruka, after all the majority of Shinobi finished their career as Chunin. With only an exceptional few, the elite progressing beyond that.

Letting out a sigh Iruka looked around the classroom as he continued his lecture on the most efficient way to move through desert terrain. The contented smile on his face fading slightly as he looked around at his class, noticing as he did that a number of his students were either not paying attention or in one case actually sleeping.

Gritting his teeth in irritation, Iruka decided he had had enough, bouncing the eraser for his whiteboard up and down in his hand, he then proceeded to hurl it like one would a kunai at one of the repeat offenders. His target, a skinny, blue haired academy student letting out a sudden yelp as the eraser struck him on head, his reaction caused more by shock than any real pain. Iruka having thrown the eraser only hard enough to make the boy wake up, and not enough to actually cause him harm.

"Sora, perhaps you could tell us the best way a Shinobi team could inconspicuously traverse through the desert regions of Suna?" Iruka asked a vein on his forehead beginning to bulge as he saw the bored look Sora sent him, the look slowly turning into a lazy smirk as he noticed how irritated his teacher appeared to be.

"How the hell should I know? I mean aren't you supposed to be the teacher? If you're asking a student for help, maybe someone needs to tell the Hokage about how bad the teachers here in the Academy are." Sora replied sarcastically, a grin on his face as he looked around the room. A couple of the other students chuckling nervously, whilst other winced as they heard Sora's obnoxious comment.

Bringing his hand to his head and beginning to massage his temple, Iruka let out a sigh, attempting as he did so to calm himself down before he lost his temper. After all a teacher should never lose control in front of their students, that was as self-destructive as was possible as it would show the students that they had gotten to him.

Dropping his hand to his side Iruka fixed his eyes on the boy in question, Sora. The boy was always rude, even to people he liked. Not that he had many that liked him, after all if his obnoxious personality didn't drive them away then having the Nine Tails sealed inside him certainly would.

The mindless tailed beast had originally disappeared sixteen years ago, soon after Minato Namikaze the Fourth Hokage and his, as it later turned out, pregnant wife Kushina both died stopping the beast. The two of them going down in the annals of the Hidden Leaf's history for their selfless and heroic actions. The beast though had not been gone for long, as seven years later the beasts power was discovered to have been trapped inside Sora.

Apparently it had taken all twelve of the Guardian Shinobi, all of them strong and talented Shinobi who had sworn their lives to the protection of the Fire Daimyo and the Land of Fire, to defeat the beast. When the dust cleared, only four people were left alive, one of them being the young Sora, who soon after was picked up by Jiraiya of the Sannin and brought back to the Hidden Leaf Village for his own safety.

Those in the class and the majority of the civilian population didn't know why Sora's right hand was bandaged like it was, the Hokage having passed a law prohibiting the Shinobi who were aware from speaking of it, all in order to ensure Sora could live as good a life as possible. But those who were there years ago when Sora was first brought to the Hidden Leaf knew of the beast-like arm hidden beneath. A small portion of the Village's population knew and although they never did anything directly they still viewed the boy with an air of suspicion, something that the rest of the Village caught onto and like mindless sheep copied.

Iruka as the boy's teacher had been informed by the Hokage of what Sora was, just in case of an incident. Still though, Iruka saw himself as a teacher first. Which meant he treated Sora as any other student and not as the Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tails, even if his past experiences made that a little bit difficult.

"You would know answer Sora if you had actually been paying attention, after all it's what the class has been covering for the last half an hour. Maybe if you were awake, you would know answer. Sakura, could you please tell me the best way for a Shinobi team to pass through desert territory?" Mizuki, Iruka's teaching assistant spoke up. A slight frown on his face as he looked over at Sora, Mizuki having far less sympathy for Sora than Iruka had, despite him not knowing just what the boy was.

"Ermm, well a Shinobi should travel during the night when the desert temperature is lower and with the darkness providing more cover." Sakura, a skinny girl with long pink hair around the same age as Sora began. A bit startled at first, but getting more confident as she recited what Iruka had literally just taught them. "When necessary a Shinobi should sleep during the day time, using a camouflage sheet to protect them from the sun and allow them to blend in with the surrounding sand, this would allow for the Shinobi to conserve water and-"

"Nerd!" Sora interrupted loudly, an angry expression on his face as Sakura showed him up. His face flushing red in embarrassment as he heard a couple of the other students around him sniggering into their hands.

"Sora! Detention!" Iruka shouted in response, having had enough with Sora for the day. After all he had decided to treat him as any other student, meaning if he made a fool of himself and interrupted the class than he would receive the same punishment any other student would get.

 **( - )**

 **(A half an hour later)**

It was around thirty minutes later that the class ended and seeing the exodus of the other students as a potential opportunity to avoid punishment Sora tried to use the confusion created to escape out of the window, unfortunately for the boy though he was at a Shinobi Academy.

Meaning that Iruka was easily able to notice Sora's actions and grab the wayward student by the scruff of his shirt before he could disappear and escape his punishment.

Currently Sora was in the process of fulfilling that punishment, the boy in question being forced to prepare the classroom for tomorrow's graduation test. Which involved bringing in logs that could be used for testing the Replacement Technique, as well as a number of other easy yet tedious tasks that weren't hard but still had to be done.

All of this was being done under the watchful eye of Iruka, who was sat at his desk at the front of the classroom writing out the questions that would be on the written portion of the graduation test, after all you couldn't just have a set exam that an enterprising student could steal and copy before passing around, you had to make a new one up every year to ensure that only the best and brightest past.

Looking up from his task Iruka let out a slight sigh as he saw the truculent expression on Sora's face. "You know Sora, your grades as they are won't be able to cushion a failing grade on any portion of the exam tomorrow. I mean even Shikamaru's grades are higher than yours and he purposefully coasts through lessons."

"So what, you think I can't make the cut, huh!?" Sora retorted, a scowl on his face as Iruka pointed out his failings as a student. Not aware that his teacher was about to try and help him, instead only seeing Iruka as being someone out to get him.

Iruka sighed as he heard Sora's response. The boy had a real chip on his shoulder, often assuming that people were out to get him and never understanding that sometimes people were just trying to help. "It's not that you can't make the cut. You have the potential to be a splendid Shinobi, maybe even the best of your generation. But you won't be able to leave the academy let alone become the best Shinobi that you can be unless you start putting more effort in. It's not a threat, this is just a suggestion from teacher to student." Iruka said before he let out another sigh. "You're a bright kid Sora and have a lot of potential, I just don't want to see you wasting it."

"Look you don't have to pretend to care. I'm used to it." Sora suddenly snapped as he turned around, his temper flaring.

"I'm not pretending, Sora." Iruka replied holding back another sigh as he knew Sora would likely have this reaction, the boy only seemed to hear what he wanted to hear. "I really do-"

"Looks like I'm done. See you tomorrow." Sora suddenly said, cutting Iruka off as he looked around and saw he had finished his last task, using it as an excuse to leave the room and avoid the 'caring' teacher lecture. Sora knew what happened when he got close to people; either they got hurt or they hurt him. Sora had decided long ago to go without friends, he didn't need them or want them.

 **( - )**

 **(With Sora sometime later)**

A couple of hours later a once again calmed down Sora was currently napping in one of the trees that bordered Training Ground Seven, very close to the Memorial Stone that honoured Shinobi who had died serving their village.

He had been here for a while, originally coming her to blow of some steam, before deciding to take a nap. Not that his nap lasted long as Sora was soon woken up by the arrival of another person entering the Training Ground. Looking down from his position in a tree Sora looked over irritably at the intruder, quickly recognizing just who it was.

The man who had just entered the clearing appeared to be in his early thirties, with a brawny physique and heavily muscled arms, over his shoulder the man carried a large staff on his back. The sides of this man's head was shaven, leaving some longish brown hair on only the top of his head. Over a simple black shirt though the man wore a Jonin flak jacket, though even more prominently displayed was the waist-cloth he was wearing that was adorned with the kanji for fire.

Looking down at him Sora easily recognized him as Kitane, one of the three surviving members of the Twelve Guardian Shinobi and someone who Sora had only met a couple of times before when he was much younger.

Coming to a stop in front of the tree, the man patiently waited for Sora to acknowledge his presence before speaking.

"Didn't your teacher recommend studying? I'm not sure sleeping in trees will be on the test tomorrow." Kitane, the somewhat famous A-rank Shinobi said, a slight grin on his face as he looked up at Sora.

"Doesn't matter. Everyone hates me for whatever reason. I doubt they'd let me be a Shinobi, even if I was the best in the class." Sora replied bitterly, going off the treatment he received from a number of other Shinobi he had come across he knew he would not be welcomed within the ranks.

Kitane nodded at that, his smile not dropping.

"You know Sora, I knew your father back in the day." Kitane began, putting up his hand to stop the question on Sora's tongue as his smile became somewhat fixed. "His name was Kazuma, and not only was he one of my comrades, he was also one of my friends."

"Wait, does that mean my dad was one of the Twelve Guardian Shinobi?!" Sora asked in shock, a stunned expression on his face as he tried to comprehend this new information. "Why did no one ever tell me?"

"Only Asuma, Chiriku, and I know. Asuma served the Feudal Lord until recently; he probably forgot you were still around. You can't blame Chiriku either; he lives at the Fire Temple up in the mountains doing monk stuff. You were only very young when he died. But still I thought you were old enough to remember, and for that I apologize. Only recently did I hear that you had no idea." Kitane said, a sorrowful note entering his tone at the thought of leaving a friend's son without any knowledge of just who he is and who his father was.

Hearing all this Sora was completely speechless, only staring down at Kitane. His expression not changing when the older man began to speak again. "Though if I knew Kazuma, he wouldn't want his only son to fail the Academy Exams. If you manage to pass the test tomorrow, I managed to get an old friend to agree to take you as his student."

"Did he know my father?" Sora asked quickly, desperate for any more information about the father he never knew.

"Asuma and Kazuma were as good of friends as they come. I was never quite as close to Kazuma as Asuma was," Kitane said with a slight shrug an earnest expression on his face as he continued to look up at Sora. "Asuma will be able to tell you more about your father than I ever could, so pass the test tomorrow and I'll introduce you."

"Wow." Sora said suddenly filled with excitement at the thought of hearing more about his father, it was an excitement only an orphan could understand. "I'm definitely gonna pass that test tomorrow!" Sora continued on excitedly.

"Hold up." Kitane said in amusement, holding up his hands to emphasize his point. "Asuma did say you had to pass one test to prove that you're more than just Kazuma's son. Asuma wants to see if your Kazuma's heir."

"What does that mean?" Sora asked, torn between being furious that there was a catch and confused as to what Kitane meant.

"Like I said earlier, Asuma hasn't heard of you since he's been in the Capital of Land of Fire this whole time. He trusts me, but he wants to make sure. There's a technique known only by your father and Asuma. He wants to see if you can pull it off. It isn't a complicated technique, but Asuma has the only remaining scroll detailing how to use it. But we both want you to succeed, so I'll tell you where he keeps it." Kitane finished, the smile never leaving his face as he looked up at the Jinchuuriki perched up in the tree above him.

Sora was too ecstatic to have heard about his father and have the hope of finding out more to notice anything suspicious with Kitane's story. Instead he only nodded his head, caught up in the enthusiasm.

 **( - )**

 **(Sometime later)**

Sora had been having a great day ever since Kitane had talked to him earlier, his previous frustration with Iruka and his general situation forgotten as he got caught up in the excitement of finding out who he was, and who his father was.

Asuma's apartment had been surprisingly easy to break into. The scroll had been somewhat harder to find, but Kitane's instructions hadn't led him wrong, and he had headed out of the village soon after acquiring it, heading to one of the training grounds in the woods.

He had forgotten the specific training ground in the excitement of learning a new Technique on top of finding out about his father. Sora figured he'd see if this Asuma was all that. If he couldn't find Sora practicing a destructive Technique in the woods, then Sora would likely get all the information about Kazuma he could and then train under someone more competent. At the moment though Sora was just too happy to care about anything beyond learning about his father.

Cracking open the scroll Sora began to read about the 'Flying Swallow' technique.

After more than an hour of practice, Sora was beginning to feel like Kitane had lied to him. This technique wasn't easy at all! Channeling chakra was difficult enough, but wind chakra was proving to be impossible, he hadn't even known that chakra could have an elemental affinity. He had been at it for nearly an hour now, and the claw marks from his weapon, a steel claw, were strewn around the clearing he was training in.

Currently Sora was taking a short break to recover his chakra, after all he didn't have a huge amount maybe just about that of an experienced Chunin and this was a very chakra consuming technique. In fact he had used so much chakra that he was currently feeling a little tired, which is why after a couple of minutes of trying to fight off sleep he decided to give into it and have a quick nap.

 **( - )**

 **(Sometime Later)**

"You know, I wasn't sure what to think when Kazuma's son decided to try and steal from a Jounin's home in broad daylight, especially when that home belongs to me." A deep voice suddenly spoke up from just above Sora, waking him up from his nap a startled expression on his face. "If the Uchiha Military Police were still around, you'd be sleeping in a jail cell, not a forest."

Sora sat up and opened his eyes to take in the new arrival, instantly feeling a little tense as he felt an aura of danger surrounding this man in front of him.

The man wore a Jounin's flak jacket with a Leaf Village forehead protector tied around his head identifying him as a Hidden Leaf Shinobi. A burning cigarette hung from the man's mouth, and his brown hair stretched down from the top of his head to the bottom of his chin in large sideburns and a small goatee.

All of this was lost on Sora though once he saw the waist cloth the man was wearing, the one with the kanji for fire emblazoned on it. Sora quickly identifying this man as one of the Twelve Guardian Shinobi. Other than Kitane, the only living members were Asuma and Chiriku, and since Chiriku was apparently living in some monastery somewhere, this could only be Asuma, his father's old friend.

Understanding this and sensing the man's irritation, Sora began to feel slightly afraid of being punished by the man he had stolen from. But as the fear began to grow within him, the dangerous aura around Asuma dissipated, the man chuckling slightly as he looked down at Sora, Asuma seeming more amused than angry.

"I decided to follow the little squirt who thought he could steal from me, set on stopping a potential spy. But I must say, even if you are Kazuma's kid, learning the Flying Swallow to this degree in such a short time is impressive." Asuma spoke again, his tone slightly more friendly as he looked around the clearing, noting all of the gouges and slices on both the ground and surrounding trees as he did so.

Before Sora could respond, three poles struck the ground in a triangle around him. Lightning springing from each of the staffs, forming an electric blue cage around the shocked Sora. The action also caused Asuma to suddenly leap backwards his guard raised as he landed in a crouch a few metres away his eyes narrowed as he looked into the surrounding woods.

"Asuma, glad you showed up. Now we can finish this." Kitane spoke up, the man stepping out of the trees his friendly façade from before fading to revealing a cold expression on his face and flinty eyes as he looked over at Sora.

"Finish what? What are you on about?" Asuma asked in confusion as he looked between his old friend and the trapped Sora. Not at all sure just what was going on here, but definitely ready to get to the bottom of it.

"We can avenge Kazuma. We can kill the Nine Tails." Kitane said a wild look entering his eyes as he looked form the scared looking Sora to the frowning Asuma, his hands clenched into fists.

"What are you talking about?!" Sora asked, even more confused by just what the hell was going on than Asuma, especially when the dread beast that attacked the village just over sixteen years ago, before Sora was even alive, was mentioned. "Where does the Nine Tails come into any of this?!"

"Oh come on Sora! Don't tell me you couldn't figure it out. Your right arm, the looks of distrust, the 'mysterious' disappearance of the Nine Tails? No one knows where the Nine Tails went right after the attack all those years ago, but it resurfaced to attack the Twelve Guardian Shinobi years later. Putting two and two together yet, Sora?" Kitane shouted his eyes wide and a vicious expression on his face, as he saw Sora's eyes widen with the realization of what Kitane was implying.

"Let me spell it out for you then beast! You aren't Kazuma's son Sora, you just took that form after we defeated you. You are the Nine Tailed Demon Fox, the beast that killed our comrades all those years ago, including both Sora and his father Kazuma! Nauma, Seito, Tou, and I defeated you using Limelight long enough for the Third Hokage and Jiraiya to seal you back up, but that arm is proof that you'll just break that seal soon enough. But now we can end it, me and Asuma have you at our mercy, weakened and alone. Now we can finish you off once and for all!" Kitane shouted blood beginning to drip down from his clenched fists, all rational thought quickly leaving his mind.

"What! What are you talking about Kitane? My dad and Jiraiya might not be the seal master the Fourth was, but they knows what they're doing. This is Sora, and if you kill him, the beast he's been holding back all these years will be released! It took so much sacrifice to stop the beast before, and you'd see that wasted for some misaimed revenge?" Asuma said in disbelief before drawing two trench knives out of his kunai pouch his eyes narrowing as he prepared to fight. "I'm sorry Kitane, but I won't let the others have died in vain."

"Fool!" Kitane snarled spitting on the floor at Asuma's feet. "It has you tricked Asuma! But if you can't see the truth then you are just in my way! I'm sorry old friend, but you'll have to die alongside the Nine Tails!"

With that said Kitane drew another staff from his back, the tip splitting into three prongs, lightning arching between them as he pointed the weapon at his old comrade who in response began to channel wind chakra into his knives.

Meanwhile as this was happening, Sora was feeling paralyzed, shocked by the deluge of information he was receiving. Kitane hadn't meant a word he had said earlier. Kitane hadn't wanted to watch over him, or help him become a Shinobi. He had just wanted to exhaust Sora for an easy kill. That was why he had lured Sora and Asuma out here and tricked him into trying to learn that ridiculous technique. All so he could weaken Sora before killing him with Asuma's help.

As these thoughts were running thought Sora's mind, Asuma and Kitane had engaged one another in combat. The Hokage's son's trench knives clashing repeatedly with Kitane's lightning enshrouded staff. The wind chakra coating the blade giving Asuma the technical advantage as wind was strong against lightning. At the same time though, the length of Kitane's staff and his skill with the weapon kept Asuma at a safe distance, creating somewhat of a stalemate as they fought.

"Just give it up Asuma! Just let me kill the Nine Tails. There's no need for us to fight." Kitane shouted over the crackling of the lightning as he swung his staff round, the chakra metal staff being repelled by Asuma's wind infused blades.

"Not a chance!" Asuma shot back, jumping back to try and tip the scales. Asuma's hands flying through a number of rapid hand seals as he did so.

This was an action Kitane copied as they faced off several metres apart, both of them completing their two different elemental techniques at the same time.

Fire Style: Ash Pile Burning!

Lightning Style: Raging Bolt!

A large sphere of lightning formed over Kitane's head as he unleashed his attack, the lightning orb crackling with power before it exploded, a bolt of lightning hurtling through the air towards Asuma.

In response Asuma opened his mouth and breathed out large black cloud of what looked like smoke at Kitane, the smoke acting as a cover that allowed Asuma to deftly avoid Kitane's attack before retreating from sight.

"I always knew you were a coward, but this is a new low! Even for you Asuma!" Kitane shouted his voice almost hysterical as he whirled around in the smoke, clearly searching for Asuma.

Suddenly, Asuma spoke up, his voice coming from seemingly every direction making Kitane twirl around his crackling weapon held up in front of him. "Shame you were always too focused on your berserker charges to notice the end of this technique." Asuma said the tone of his voice flat, neither victorious nor angry.

With that said, an audible click was heard as Asuma hit the flint he had embedded in his tooth, a spark being released.

The resulting spark was enough to expose the smoke for what it actually was, a highly flammable ash. The resulting explosion destroyed the area, and for once Sora was glad for the lightning walls surrounding him. As the walls provided him with protection from the fiery explosion that tore up the ground and blackened the surrounding trees.

Asuma spoke again as the smoke cleared. "Looks like you let your guard down at the end." With that said he leaped down from the tree he had been crouched in, entering the clearing cautiously as he looked around for any sign of Kitane. Seeing none he walked over to Sora's prison and sliced one of the pillars of the lightning field clean in half, ending the technique.

"Who let his guard down at the end!? 'Lightning Style: Lightning Eruption!'" Kitane's voice suddenly shouted, making Sora and Asuma twist around in shock.

"What!?" Asuma exclaimed as the ground beneath his feet exploded, bolts of lightning erupting upwards. Kitane emerged from the remaining smoke, several dark red burns on his arms and face and his clothing badly burnt and shredded, but otherwise unharmed.

The electricity from Kitane's technique shot up from the ground, electrocuting Asuma and bringing him to his knees with a gasp, blood spraying forth from his mouth. As it was, Asuma had only managed to remain conscious through copious amounts of wind chakra being pumped through his body, the best he was able to do at such short notice.

Kitane laughed at his former comrade's sorry state, any compassion he might have felt worn away by the madness that had gripped him. "As if I didn't know what your techniques do! We were comrades for years. Now move aside so I can end the Nine Tails once and for all!"

"No. Kazuma wouldn't want this Kitane! Sora isn't the Nine Tails. I can't say I know him well, but Sora is Sora, no one else. And Sora is our friend's son! I'll die before I let you kill him!" Asuma shouted, awkwardly staggering to his feet his grip on his trench knives tightening.

"Well then I'll just kill you first.' Lightning Style: Thunder Clap'!" Lightning began to cover Kitane's hands as he finished the hand seals for his technique.

Withuot pausing Kitane rushed forward his arms held behind him ready to be brought forward, lightning running up and down them as he closed in on Asuma, preparing to kill the man with a single final blow.

Sora's eyes widened as he saw this taking place, a look of horror crossing in his face, before without any thought at all he lunged forward.

Kitane's eyes flickered to Sora as he saw his movements, an ugly look crossing his face as he saw Sora make a desperate slash at him with his claw like weapon. It only took Kitane a single look to see that the attack would fall at least a good foot short of him.

Shifting himself mid attack, Kitane went to strike Sora instead of Asuma, hoping to kill the beast now and finish this whole tragic affair. Allowing the boy's metal claws to pass by harmlessly, Kitane went in for the kill.

Or he would have, if a sharp pain hadn't suddenly spread across his chest. Looking over at Sora, Kitane quickly noticed the red chakra coating the blades of his claws, extending a good foot and a half past the end of the tip of the serrated blades.

Looking down, Kitane noticed the three parallel slashes running across the front of his chest. He had only a second to marvel at the fact that Sora had somehow managed to pull off a bastardized version of the Flying Swallow technique despite having had the scroll for barely more than an hour. That was the last thought he had before a far stronger, and far more experienced user of the Flying Swallow struck him square in the chest.

"Flying Swallow: Straight Line!" Asuma muttered to himself as his twin blades struck Kitane's chest, the wind sharpened blades cutting through flesh, muscle and bone like a hot knife through butter. With a final grunt Asuma followed through with his strike, the two blades tearing out of Kitane's body, causing his top half to fall backwards to the ground with a sickening thud, whilst his lower half collapsed forward. Asuma's wind blades having cut Kitane in half.

From the side, the exhausted Sora looked at the scene in front of him with shock, his eyes widening as blood began to pool out of Kitane's body and soak into the ground. Feeling the metallic taste of blood in his mouth, Sora wretched once before turning to the side and throwing up

"Come on, Sora. As much as I'd love to collapse here and rest, we'd best report this to the Hokage." Asuma said placing a strong hand on Sora's shoulder.

Sora could only swallow and nod as Asuma started to walk away, Sora stumbling after him wiping the bile from around his mouth.

Looking over his shoulder at the young blue haired boy, Asuma gave him a faint smile. "Good work back there Sora. The Flying Swallow isn't easy to learn, so… good job."

Despite all that he had been through, Sora found a grin creeping cross his face.

 **( - )**

 **(In the Hokage's Tower)**

Within the Hokage's Tower in the centre of Konoha, Hiruzen Sarutobi the Third Hokage and current leader of the Hidden Leaf looked into a small crystal ball in front of him, a slight frown on his face as he cut off his chakra. The technique he had been fueling fading away, just as the image of Asuma's and Sora disappeared. Hiruzen having just watched the entire confrontation with Kitane after having been clued into Sora's actions by his son, Asuma.

Settling back into his chair his pipe in his hand, Hiruzen used a low level fire technique to light his pipe. Absentmindedly sucking on the wooden tip, puffing out a bit of smoke as he did so a slight frown on his face.

The story of Sora was truly a sad one, one that only Jiraiya, Chiriku and himself knew fully, and if Hiruzen had anything to say about it that was how it would remain. After all this secret involved the safety and prosperity of the Hidden Leaf and was a secret worth killing over.

During the Nine-Tails' attack on the Leaf Village sixteen years ago, some of the beast's chakra was scattered throughout the village. Sora's father, Kazuma who had been a Jounin here at the time, had taken the initiative and collected the chakra beforesealed it into Sora's body a few years after the attack, all in the hope of producing a partial copy of the Nine Tails, turning Sora into a pseudo-Jinchuuriki. It was an action that Hiruzen had sanctioned after Kazuma had told him what he had done.

After all from what Jiraiya had discovered from his Toad Summons, Minato on the night of the Nine Tail's attack had attempted to seal the Nine Tails within his son. Whether he succeeded or not was unknown, but what Hiruzen did know was that Minato and Kushina were dead as too was their new born son. As for the Nine Tails, that was gone, completely vanished.

This had left the Hidden Leaf without a Jinchuuriki, which for a Great Village was a major problem. After all for all the rhetoric and stigma surrounding them, Jinchuuriki were principally incredibly powerful weapons/Shinobi and war deterrents. If it were found that the Hidden Leaf no longer possessed the strongest of them, well the other Shinobi Villages would begin circling them like vultures. It would put the entire village in danger, as such Hiruzen had begrudgingly agreed to Kazuma's actions.

Of course a few years after the implantation of the Nine Tail's chakra, Sora had gone berserk, the demonic chakra sealed within him getting loose and almost taking control. This had ended up destroying the Fire Temple where Sora was being kept for the time being, a place otherwise believed to be an indestructible fortress. It had taken all Twelve Guardian Shinobi to stop Sora's rampage giving both Jiraiya and himself time to seal the beast up, limited as they were by the need to keep him alive.

This had led to a number of them dying and Hiruzen making the choice to have Jiraiya redo Sora's seal, replacing Kazuma's version with his own one, based off of the notes Minato had left behind. After that he had kept Sora here in the Hidden Leaf, somewhere where he could keep an eye on the pseudo-Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tails.

Letting out another puff of smoke, Hiruzen couldn't help but lament the deaths and pain caused by his decisions. Unfortunately though it had to be done, for the good of the Hidden Leaf. He could only wish that Minato's son had survived, after all with his Uzumaki heritage and his parentage he would truly have been a sight to behold.

 **( - )**

 **(In a hidden location)**

Miles away from the Hidden Leaf, ten shadowy figures gathered atop the fingertips of a massive statue, their bodies seemingly made of darkish purple energy with only their eyes being clearly visible through the technique that allowed them all to gather here.

The leader of the group, a figure stood atop the right thumb was the first one to speak, his purple ringed eyes looking around at the other figures he had summoned before him. "Since we are gathered here, I can only assume that Zetsu and Sasori have found the targets. Am I correct?" Pain finally asked his deep voice echoing around the cave as he looked over at the left hand.

" **Indeed, we've just located the Nine Tails Jinchuuriki. Yeah, he was really good at hiding, but we finally got him to use the Nine Tail's chakra.** Yeah, thanks for letting us use that Kitane guy Sasori!" Answered the figure standing on the little finger of the right hand, his yellow eyes looking around the room as he spoke with two distinct voices, one of which was deep and serious, with the other being higher pitched.

A hunched over figure standing on the left thumb of the statue spoke up next in a deep, raspy voice. "Well you're not welcome. That one was a useful spy, not that he knew. But desperate times call for desperate measures. The Nine Tails has certainly kept us waiting, and I hate waiting."

"Now that we have identified the targets, it will be up to you to gather them. Wait until the beast before yours has been captured to move, but once that requirement is met, take as much time as you will. It will make little difference. But do not strike in a way to draw attention. The Akatsuki must remain in the shadows a bit longer if we are to succeed in bringing true peace to this word." Pain spoke again, his voice echoing around the cavern.

"I'm just surprised you managed to find him at all. He's successfully evaded the two best spymasters on the continent for over sixteen years?" A tall, heavily muscled figure that stood on the left little finger said, his amber eyes narrowed and a sharp tone in his voice as he fixed his eyes on the figure with two voices.

"We are Akatsuki." A female voice spoke up from the right middle finger her voice sounding slightly bored as her unique orange eyes fixed on the one who had just spoken and odd emotion hidden with their depths. "The only time we do not do 'good' jobs is when we do 'perfect' jobs."

"Collect the information on your targets. We start with the Seven Tails. Dismissed." Pain said suddenly cutting off all other conversation, the tone of his voice brooking no compromise. Nodding their heads the shadowy figures began faded into nothingness, the demonic statue slipping into the ground, leaving no evidence that anyone had ever been there.

 **( - )**

 **(With Naruto in the Land of Water)**

Opening his eyes Naruto once again became fully aware of his surroundings, even after three years he was still not fully sure of Pain's communication technique. Often finding it very disorientating. Stretching slightly Naruto pushed himself up from where he had been previously sat, leaning against the trunk of a tree. His actions causing Deidara who like him was coming out of the trance caused by Pain's technique, to fall to the side and land in the dirt, the blonde haired man sprawling on the ground and letting out several curses.

Deidara having been assigned as Naruto and Kin's partner, the mad bomber having become somewhat friends with the two even if Kin ignored his every attempt at flirting and Naruto threatened him with death or dismemberment every other day. Theirs was a strange friendship, though maybe not when it came to dealing with S-rank Shinobi, which by this point all three of them could easily be classified as.

"So how did the meeting go?" Kin asked from a few feet away, causing Naruto to turn to look at her, ignoring the still cursing Deidara as he did so. His eyes locking on Kin, even as a sudden heat began to flood his body.

The now sixteen year old Kin, now clad in Akatsuki robes, was crouched over next to a campfire. Her raven hair tied back in a ponytail. Her dark eyes turning to look at Naruto, the light of the fire revealing her flawless porcelain skin, and her delicate beautiful features.

A slight smirk tugged at her features as she saw Naruto looking, Kin absentmindedly pushing herself to her feet. Enjoying the feeling on Naruto's piercing amber eyes as he followed her movements, her heart beginning to beat faster as she did so. The now six foot two tall, man who like her was wearing Akatsuki robes, was standing just a few feet from the five foot two Kin, his wild silver hair and amber eyes gleaming in the light of the nearby fire.

"Well?" Kin asked putting her hand on her hip as she gave Naruto an expectant look, pushing aside any irritation she was previously feeling at being unable to take part in the meeting herself, due to her not wearing the Akatsuki ring. Instead she was happy that Naruto was once again up and about, even if that did mean she would have to tolerate Deidara presence.

"We're ready to begin. They've found the Nine Tails." Naruto finally replied an oddly relieved grin spreading across his face.

Interpreting his grin to mean he was happy that their three years of waiting and wandering was over, three years of pretty much doing exactly what they were doing before, only with the added irritant of Deidara's presence. Finally they were going to start the exciting stuff. "I was getting bored of waiting."

"Yeah me too." Naruto replied sending Kin a grin, as much as he enjoyed taking S-class jobs he was starting to get restless. Now though things could really start happening, especially now the Akatsuki had somehow found a Nine Tails Jinchuuriki. Despite Naruto being positive that he was in fact the only one, something that no human, not even Kin his closest friend and confidant knew. After all the knowledge of that particular secret could put her in danger and the Naruto would rather die than let that happen.

"So what happens now then?" Kin asked as she sidled up to Naruto, her hand absentmindedly trailing down his chest.

Fighting down the desire he felt rising up in him at his friend's actions, Naruto instead focused on the question. "Now, now we start hunting Jinchuuriki."

 **( - )**

 **AN: And that is the chapter what did you all think? I hope you enjoyed it.**

 **I would just like to answer a few questions people might have quickly. The inclusion of Sora (a canon character) in this story was something I really liked form Panory Bro's original story. It made sense to me that when Konoha found out they had lost their Jinchuuriki that they would attempt to get a new one or find another way to mitigate this. With Hiruzen in command they would not go to war y trying to steal one, creating a new one though is a possibility. Specially if a Shinobi worked off their own initiative and tried to do it themselves even if their motives may not be pure. This was an idea I though made a lot of sense and something I very much enjoyed about Dawn's Sage.**

 **On the character of Sora he will not be a rip off of Canon Naruto, nor will he be anywhere near as powerful as a true Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tails. Sora as a character will remain periphery, a point of view that shows what is going on in Konoha. He won't be a focus and Naruto, Kin and others in their group will remain the main focus for this story going forwards.**

 **In terms of joining the Akatsuki this was something I saw as none optional. Pain after all isn't the most forgiving of people, and not only is he himself an overpowered character he has an entire group of S-rank Shinobi behind him.**

 **In terms of time skips we have now reach a point where they will no longer be anymore yearlong time skips. We will have Naruto's adventures going forwards though as well as his relationships with his companions which will be fun to write.**

 **So with that said I hope you all enjoyed the chapter it is my longest one yet and I enjoyed writing it. I hope you all leave a comment or a review too to tell me what you think.**

 **So yeah other than that I will see you all later.**

 **Seagate.**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: So here is the next chapter. Sorry for the wait, I just had quite a few other stories I wanted to update. Now though I finally got this one out, so I hope you all like it.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

 **( - )**

 **(Last Time)**

 _"We're ready to begin. They've found the Nine Tails." Naruto finally replied an oddly relieved grin spreading across his face._

 _Interpreting his grin to mean he was happy that their three years of waiting and wandering was over, three years of pretty much doing exactly what they were doing before, only with the added irritant of Deidara's presence. Finally they were going to start the exciting stuff. "I was getting bored of waiting."_

 _"Yeah me too." Naruto replied sending Kin a grin, as much as he enjoyed taking S-class jobs he was starting to get restless. Now though things could really start happening, especially now the Akatsuki had somehow found a Nine Tails Jinchuuriki. Despite Naruto being positive that he was in fact the only one, something that no human, not even Kin his closest friend and confidant knew. After all the knowledge of that particular secret could put her in danger and the Naruto would rather die than let that happen._

 _"So what happens now then?" Kin asked as she sidled up to Naruto, her hand absentmindedly trailing down his chest._

 _Fighting down the desire he felt rising up in him at his friend's actions, Naruto instead focused on the question. "Now, now we start hunting Jinchuuriki."_

 **( - )**

 **Chapter 6**

 **( - )**

 **(With Naruto)**

"Ok, so let me get this straight. Your plan is that we just waltz into perhaps one of the, if not the most heavily defended Hidden Village in the world. Not only uninvited though, but also in full Akatsuki regalia as well?" Deidara asked incredulously, a disbelieving look on his face as he stared at the amused looking Naruto in front of him. "Really that's your plan?!"

"You forgot about the whole, dropping hints about how we're looking for the Nine Tail's Jinchuuriki whilst we are there bit too." Kin added in dryly, the pretty, dark haired girl, perhaps for the first time ever on Deidara's side as she too looked at Naruto incredulously.

"That's the general gist of the plan." Naruto replied back just as dryly, a bored look on his face as he looked over at the other two, his amber coloured eyes shifting from the tall, blonde haired Deidara, resplendent in his Akatsuki robes, to his loyal partner Kin, similarly dressed though with subtle adjustments to allow for her busty physique, light armour and blade. "Though you are forgetting a crucial point?"

"Oh really what? Are we going to carry a big sign with us saying 'Please try and kill us'? As if the rest of your plan wasn't already saying that!" Deidara responded sarcastically, a mocking tone to his voice.

"Shut up Deidara!" Kin broke in, her dark eyes turning flinty as she heard the mocking tone to his voice. Nobody was allowed to mock Naruto, nobody accept her of course.

"What did you just say pipsqueak!?" Deidara snapped back angrily, his eyes narrowing as he looked over at Kin.

Only for the girl to completely ignore him as she instead looked over to where Naruto was. The silver haired man, currently sitting on the ground at the base of a tree, several miles away from the border of the Leaf Village.

"What did you mean before, what are we missing?" Kin asked, an expectant expression on her face.

"The Leaf Village has just been through a minor war. Their Hokage is dead, as are nearly a hundred of their other Shinobi. They're currently leaderless and weakened." Naruto replied, his mind going back to the report Zetsu, another member of the Akatsuki had given him. One about how the Hidden Sound Village and the Hidden Sand Village had tried to invade the Leaf. With the orchestrator of the invasion, Orochimaru, having killed Hirzuen Sarutobi during the end of conflict.

"Surely that would just mean that their security will be tighter than ever to compensate for that. If we blatantly enter a recently war torn village like you're suggesting, then we'll have to face off against an entire Hidden Village, and that is a fight we can't win." Kin responded, her brow furrowed as she looked over at Naruto, absently playing with the end of her long ponytail as she tried to work out what her closest/only friend was up to.

"Yeah being found out is the point, if people know we're in the village looking for the Jinchuuriki they'll get him out of their as fast as they can. When you chase your prey, they always attempt to get back to their home, a place of safety, but when you invade their home what do they do then?" Naruto asked as he pushed himself to his feet, bringing his clawed hand up to brush some twigs and leaves off of his Akatsuki robes as he did so.

"They leave their home and attempt to find a new place to hide." Kin replied a look of comprehension on her face, before she frowned again. "But surely the three of us can't pose such a threat to a Hidden Village that they would take their main weapon out of it?"

"We don't have to pose a threat to the whole Village, just to the security of their Jinchuuriki, and considering the Leaf Village is leaderless and undermanned, I believe that moving our target is exactly what they'll do. After all they don't want a massive fight breaking out in the Village, not just because of the damage we'll cause, but also because of the impact it'll have on their reputation" Naruto replied back, before he began moving through the forest, the other two following him as he took to the trees, picking up his pace as the three rapidly ate up the miles. "Besides, Pain gave us permission to put Akatsuki on the map. If some people see us, it's no big deal, not now that we've become a bit more proactive in hunting down the Jinchuuriki."

"You know they might have already moved him, after all we're not the only ones hunting the Jinchuuriki, and apparently one of their Shinobi, Jiraiya of the Sannin, is quite the spymaster." Kin said, the girl having been told such by Zetsu, the creepy plant like man who was also a member of the Akatsuki.

"Then we'll improvise, after all they'll likely send someone to warn our target if we make ourselves known. Then we can just follow them and track our target down that way." Naruto replied, a similar thought having already come to him when he was thinking of the best way to get the apparent 'Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tails'. Which he was still kind of confused about, after all he was under the impression that he was the Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tails.

"Look yeah, I'll go along with you on this one." Deidara spoke up, the scowl on his face showing the other two that he didn't like it. "I mean my art could probably level a city, but stealth and kidnappings, they're not my strong suit, yeah. You're the ones into that kind of shit!"

"Stealth and hunting, I'm good at." Naruto acknowledged, with a nod. "Kidnapping, not so much. I don't usually leave my prey alive."

"Well then you better practice a bit of restraint." Kin replied a slight smile on her face as she looked over to Naruto. "Because I doubt that Pain would be happy if you kill the Jinchuuriki."

"Yeah he'll probably skin you alive if you do that!" Deidara added in mockingly.

"He could try." Naruto said bluntly a stoic expression on his face, one which he used to hide his uncertainty. After all he had felt the power Pain possessed, and wasn't confident at all that he could survive a fight with him. Certainly not if the other Akatsuki members joined in.

"Ha! You got balls Naruto, that's why I like you!" Deidara laughed out, quite amused by the silver haired Sage's confidence.

"I always did think you swung that way." Kin spoke up dryly.

"Wait what?!" Deidara snapped as he heard Naruto let out a slight chuckle.

"Nothing." Naruto replied back, before he turned serious once more. "Kin does make a good point though, your incapability's are the reason why you're partnered with Kin and myself. My abilities are generally short ranged, powerful and tend to be incredibly lethal. Kin's are midrange and based around stealth and skill. Yours however are long ranged and rely entirely on over the top explosions, and mass destruction."

"Which means that when we do find the Jinchuuriki, all you need to do is to make sure that he doesn't have time to use a full transformation." Kin added on, an amused expression at the insulting way Naruto had described Deidara's abilities. Not that the blonde seemed to notice.

"And what if the Jinchuuriki does transform?" Deidara asked curiously, looking from the petit Kin to the heavily built Naruto as he did so.

"If you fail, then I will have no choice but to do a summoning." Naruto said bluntly, a slight frown on his face as he did so. After all Fenrir and Akela were the only summons in the Direwolf Clan who could stand against a Tailed Beast, even if only temporarily

"You know, you bang on about these summons of yours, but I've never actually seen you summon anything before. What even is your summoning contract?" Deidara asked abruptly, his curiousity rising once again as he eyed Naruto curiously. Taking in his clawed hands and feet, his amber eyes and his shaggy silver coloured hair as he did so. Noting that Naruto was a unique looking guy, but even so Deidara wasn't sure whether his appearance was a natural trait he was born with or whether it had anything to do with him being a self-proclaimed 'Sage' or his summoning contract.

"We're here." Naruto spoke up, completely dismissing Deidara's questions.

After all his summoning contract was a sacred thing to him, he wouldn't just summon the wolves for no reason. Nor was he that keen on giving out information that may one day be used against him. He might not be a Shinobi in the traditional sense, but he was paranoid and suspicious enough to not give up information he didn't need to.

At Naruto's words all three of them came to a halt, pausing in a nearby clearing a mile or so from the edge of the forest and the Leaf Village. All three of them spreading out their senses as they did so, with Naruto, whose sensory abilities were far beyond the others, cautiously searching out all the nearby presences, ensuring that they were not in danger of someone accidently coming across them.

"And where is 'here' exactly yeah? This is just some random clearing. The Hidden Leaf is still about like a mile that way. Why don't we just go straight there and get this 'brilliant' plan of yours over and done with." Deidara said loudly, a scowl on his face as he looked over at where Naruto was crouched.

Despite his frustration though, he didn't make a move to go past him. He had after all learned over the years that he'd spent with Kin and Naruto that the other teen's sensory abilities were surpassed by none, except maybe Zetsu and Pain.

Which meant that when he said to stop, you stopped, even if it was in the middle of the woods for no discernible reason. Of course there was another reason to stop, and that was Naruto's temper. Which was truly terrifying when he was provoked, luckily though he was calm and controlled for the most part, only giving way to anger when Kin was in danger or when someone really pissed him off. Which is something Deidara had somewhat of a talent for.

Naruto in response, completely ignored Deidara as he calmly went through a number of seals. His clawed hands moving slowly and carefully, a look of deep concentration on his face. Before a half minute or so later, he finished making the dozen or so seals and instead put his right hand on Kin's chest, while his left hand took a place on Deidara's.

Much to Deidara's consternation as he shot Naruto a scowl, but didn't knock his hand away. Naruto didn't do anything without a purpose after all. Kin meanwhile shifted awkwardly, her cheeks heating up as she shot Naruto a longing look, her heart beating faster as she felt the warmth of his palm on her chest.

Before either of them could say anything though, a sealing matrix spread out from Naruto's clawed hands, running across both of their bodies before fading. After which Naruto took his hands away and instead did the same to himself, a sealing matrix once again spreading out from his hand and encircling his own chest.

"What did you just do?" Kin asked curiously, one of her hands coming up to rub at the area Naruto had placed his hand. Deidara grunting as he too looked to the amber eyed teen for answers.

"The Hidden Leaf is surrounded by a sealed dome, which alerts a team of highly trained Leaf Shinobi, known as ANBU, about anyone unauthorized person with a large chakra signature entering the Village limits." Naruto replied brusquely as he turned and started to make his way to the Village, moving cautiously this time as he did so. "Their protections don't pick up on low chakra levels though, like those that animals and civilians have, so trade is fairly unrestricted. As for the Leaf Shinobi, each of them have their chakra signature added to the dome grand matrix after graduation, which allows them, to pass the dome undetected. What I just did is an ANBU seal which will allow us to pass through the dome unmolested."

"If there's some all-seeing seal dome around the village, how come I've never heard of it before?" Deidara asked curiously as he looked over to Naruto.

"I'd assume because it's a Hidden Village." Kin answered dryly, a bland look on her face as she looked over to the blonde. "They keep secrets."

"Then how did he find out about it, yeah?" Deidara asked, a flash of annoyance passing through him as he looked between the other two.

"I was able to sense; it's after all drawing a lot of chakra from the earth in order to power it. The entire thing is an Uzumaki based design apparently, one setup when that Clan was at its peak before the Second Shinobi War. But even so, I wouldn't have been able to guess its function, luckily though Itachi, as a former high-ranking Shinobi from the Leaf filled me in on the details." Naruto replied calmly, his gaze fixed on the nearby village, his eyes turning red as he activated his Doujutsu, which allowed him to just about pick up on the translucent dome around the Hidden Village.

"The Uchiha told you that yeah? I though you two hated each other?" Deidara asked bluntly, quite surprised that Itachi Uchiha would be so helpful, especially when it was common knowledge to the other members of the Akatsuki that he considered Naruto a battle hungry savage and Kin a little girl out of her depths.

"The guy's an arse. But even he fears the wrath of Pain." Naruto replied a slight scowl on his face at the thought of the pretentious and arrogant Uchiha.

"Which basically means that Pain commanded Itachi to aid you in any way he can, so Itachi started giving away Leaf Village secrets." Kin spoke up, expanding on Naruto's explanation for the benefit of Deidara. "Though he might also be doing it because he wants to limit the collateral damage to the Leaf Village, he does have a brother there after all doesn't he?"

"Yeah but I doubt they get along, after all Itachi did slaughter their entire Clan apart from his bratty brother. The kid probably hates Itachi, and Itachi can't be all that fond of him, yeah." Deidara said, thinking back to the infamous Uchiha massacre as he did, an event that had shocked the whole continent and had cemented Itachi Uchiha's place as one of the most powerful and ruthless Missing-nin currently alive.

"Then why did he leave his brother alive then?" Kin asked, "Maybe it's because he still cares for him, which might also be why he's helping us."

"Hn, whatever, who cares about the Uchiha anyway? Though I'll admit, those Sharingan eyes they have are pretty cool. Not on the same level of my art of course, but they're up there." Deidara replied, a thoughtful expression on his face.

Naruto turned his red eyes to Deidara as he heard that, the red fading back to amber as he stopped channeling chakra to them. A contemplative expression on his face. "They do sound quite deadly. The ability to predict another movements, copy some of their techniques and cast genjutsu with eye contact."

"You thinking of getting yourself a pair as a trophy?" Kin asked curiously, after all Naruto often took trophies. His Doujutsu was one example as too were the Kiba blades he had sealed in the hilt of his sword. It was a trait Kin too had adapted as it was where she had gotten her armour and weapons from, the corpses of particularly deadly foes.

"Not as a trophy." Naruto replied quietly, his gaze shifting to Kin. "More as a gift."

Kin frown as she heard that, but wasn't able to ask any more questions as they had reached their destination. The three of them all silently scaling the walls around the Leaf Village and entering undetected. Their presences hidden by the seal Naruto had done before, one shown to him by Itachi.

About ten minutes later found the trio walking along the Leaf Village's high-street. Both Kin and Naruto looking around curiously, as this was the first Great Village either of the two had seen. On top of which this was also the place that Naruto's parents lived, and where they died. So walking through the bustling streets came with a bit of a strange feeling for Naruto.

As they walked along the high-street, the three of them also noticed that there seemed to be quite a lot of building work going on. As a number of the buildings had scaffolding on their frontage, whilst others having boards on their windows. Though considering that they'd just been through a minor war, this was something that should have been expected.

Still it was impressive to see the resilience of the residents, both Shinobi and civilians alike as the streets were busy, the Leaf Village looking well on the way to recovery.

"You know, I hear there is a place in the Village that does great ramen." Kin said a slight smile on her face as she looked over to Naruto.

Naruto cocked an eyebrow at that, the silver haired man having grown somewhat of a taste for the unhealthy noodle dish since he had begun travelling the Elemental Nations. "Let's check it out then."

"Really ramen, isn't there a better place that does, you know, proper food instead of that peasant dish? Besides I thought we were supposed to be following your master plan whilst we're here?" Deidara said waspishly as he looked around at their surroundings, noticing that their similar garb was not drawing as much attention as he had thought it would. Though then again the Akatsuki weren't that well known yet, at least not to the wider Shinobi population, plus living in a Shinobi village extravagance and flamboyancy of style was not something that would draw too much attention.

"That's what we are doing, what better place to begin asking around than a popular noodle shop?" Naruto replied blandly.

"That's just an excuse and you know it!?" Deidara snapped back.

"Shut up Deidara, you've been outvoted." Kin retort, a slight smile on her face as she saw the blonde's frustration.

"This is bullshit," Deidara muttered, grumbling to himself as he followed the other two through the busy streets and to a stall with a big sign over the top saying 'Ichiraku Ramen'.

Soon enough the three were all sat on stools in the front of the stall, waiting patiently for a pretty brunette waitress to bring them their meals. As they were doing this, the three of them also took the opportunity to ask some passersby about what happened, and what the cause was. The three of them linking it back to the infamous Nine Tails attack many years ago.

"Yeah apparently part of the reason there was so much damage is because the Hidden Sand brought along their Jinchuuriki, a real psycho that one, crushed anyone he could with his sand if you can believe it?" A pudgy civilian said loudly, his jowls wobbling as he shook his head in disgust. "How anyone can trust animals like those to be Shinobi I'll never know?"

"Hn yeah, I've heard every Village has a similar problem. Though I'm not surprised they had so much trouble controlling them, after all they are beasts." Deidara replied back, feigning a friendly demeanor as he tried to coax information out of the civilian.

"Yeah, I mean I don't know how the Leaf Village controls their Jinchuuriki as well as they do?" Kin added in, a kind smile on her face as she pushed a lock of her black hair behind her ears.

"You just need to treat them the right way is all. They're like animals after all, you've got to be strict with them, punish them if they get out of line and don't spoil them." The fat man replied back with a laugh.

"And how did that work out for you?" Kin asked curiously.

"Well we've had no trouble since the Nine Tails attack many years back. No, we keep that Sora brat in line, you don't need to worry about that." The civilian continued, a lascivious look appearing in his eyes as he saw he had Kin's full attention, his gaze roving up and down her lithe body and flawless features.

"Oh I'm ever so impressed, but where do you keep him? I take it, it's far away from schools and hospitals?" Kin continued on, leaning forwards slightly as she did so, purposefully showing off her modest cleavage.

"Yeah of course, the old Hokage, may he rest in peace, gave the brat a shitty apartment not that far from here, where the Shinobi of the Village can keep an eye on him." The fat man responded, a bead of sweat running down his forehead as his gaze flickered down to Kin's assets.

Before they could say anymore however they were distracted by the waitress returning with their food. Which prompted Kin to politely dismiss the other man, happy that she'd gotten as much as she could from him.

"So what do you reckon?" Deidara muttered to Naruto as he watched the fat man waddle off a scowl on his face.

"We've done enough, enough to get the attention of some of the Leaf Shinobi at least. I can already feel a couple of them watching us." Naruto replied quietly as he took his chopsticks and began to devour his food.

"And if they attack us?" Deidara responded, between mouthfuls of his own food.

"Then we kill them, and leave Konoha. After which we follow the plan and track down the Jinchuuriki when they try to get him out of the village." Naruto responded bluntly, knowing as he did that there were a lot of variables to the plan. Then again their always were when you were hunting something so dangerous and so well protected.

 **( - )**

 **(A few minutes later)**

The three teenaged members of Akatsuki eventually finished their lunch without event, if one ignored the simply insane amounts of food Naruto consumed within the time it took both Deidara and Kin to finish a single bowl. His excuse being that he had a high metabolism.

Not that Deidara cared that much as he had already decided to throw Naruto under the bus if Kakuzu asked why they had spent more than the allotted amount money they'd been given for this mission. Which of course would happen, since Kakuzu's 'allotted amount' practically had them paying him out of their own pocket, as opposed to them actually getting money out of the tall, bad tempered bounty hunter. One who held a particular grudge against Naruto, who had become his main rival over the last few years, robbing the former Hidden Waterfall Shinobi of a lot of potential bounties and the rewards which went with them.

As they continued down the high-street though, Naruto soon veered off to the left, away from the bustle of the main street as he instead led them in the direction of a nearby canal. Not that either of them asked why as both Kin and Deidara had picked up on the Shinobi following them just as Naruto had. One of whom was not as subtle as they must have of thought they were, Naruto's nose having picked up the scent of tobacco in the air back whilst they were eating ramen.

"So how do you want to do this?" Kin asked quietly as the three of them came to a sudden stop, Kin's hand resting on her sheathed tanto.

"Loudly and explosively." Deidara grinned, flexing his hands and revealing what looked like mouths on his palms.

"As quickly and efficiently as possible." Naruto corrected, his own amber eyes quite placid as he turned around, his claws gleaming in the midday sun.

In response to the group's sudden actions, their followers decided to reveal themselves. With two figures leaping off of the roof of a nearby building, and landing several yards away from where the three Akatsuki members were waiting.

An amused look spread across Naruto's face as he saw this, his amber eyes fixing on the two as he looked the two stalkers up and down.

One of them was a tall, well-built man, with dark spiky hair and a beard. A cocky smile on his face and a cigarette hanging out of his mouth, as he placed his hands on the hilts of two sheathed trench knives he had on him. His gaze evaluating the three Akatsuki members, just as they were doing the same to him.

Their other stalker meanwhile was an attractive dark haired woman, with piercing red eyes and a heavy coating of make up on. Her outfit consisting of what looked like thick bandages that were intricately wrapped around her. Like her fellow Leaf Shinobi she too was giving the three a suspicious look, though hers was one of caution as oppose to overconfidence.

"Who are you? And what business do you have in Konoha?" The male Leaf Shinobi asked bluntly, his feet shifting as he took up in a relaxed but ready stance, clearly preparing to fight at any moment.

"We're simply artists and collectors. We were looking for quite the rare piece here in the Leaf actually. Once we heard it might be here, we came as soon as we were able. After all, there are only nine pieces like it in the world." Deidara said, a slight mocking tone to his voice as he not so subtly referenced the Jinchuuriki. His fingers once again twitching as he prepared to lash out at any moment.

"Somehow I doubt your story. The three of you are clearly trained and dangerous, so we'll ask again, why are the three of you here?" The red eyed woman asked as she shifted to fully face them, moving into a more practical position for hand seals as she began to build up her chakra, ready to leap into action at any moment.

"Oh for fucks sake, yeah! Let's just get this over with!?" Deidara snapped, the hotheaded teen's patience evaporating as he instead raised his hands. "We're here looking for the Nine Tails. Hand him over, and we won't level this place."

"Deidara, can I just remind you, we're here to gather information, not start a war. Let me handle this." Naruto said calmly, his amber eyes shifting to the side briefly as he sensed a small chakra retreating. One that he had almost missed due to the two Jounin flaring their own chakra right in front of him, luckily though his sensory abilities were far beyond those of the average Shinobi.

Narrowing his eyes Naruto assumed that the two in front of him were only here to buy time for their weaker comrade to go and warn someone, presumably the Jinchuuriki and whoever was guarding him. Which was good, as this was one of the outcomes Naruto had thought would come from his plan. Not that Naruto said anything about it as he instead turned his attention to the two Hidden Leaf Shinobi in front him. "So if you could just tell us where he is, we'll leave with no trouble."

"What are you doing?" Deidara muttered, as he heard Naruto comment, confused about what the feral looking man was up to.

"Seems like we're improvising." Kin added on dryly, a faintly amused expression on her face. "Again."

"I'm afraid Sora isn't in Konoha at the moment, but you won't be around when he gets back, so don't worry!" The man snapped back as he jumped into action a moment later, no doubt hoping to surprise his three opponents, allowing him to incapacitate them before they had a chance to fight back.

Not that this worked though, because after he said this the man pulled out his two trench knives and dashed forward. The Leaf Jounin moving so fast that to a civilian he'd be little more than a blur, his two knives each covered in a barely visible shimmer of chakra.

For Naruto though with his Senjutsu enhanced speed, strength and reflexes, was easily able to keep up with the man's speed, as he shot forwards. His amber eyes locked on his opponent and a slight snarl on his face as he met the man mid charge.

Moving in close, Naruto raised his left arm to take the man's knife strike, his right clawed right hand coming up to disembowel his attacker. Trusting in the durability his Sage Made gave him to protect him, even if the Wolves' Senjutsu style did not offer him the same durability of the Toads. With his style being more suited to offense as oppose to defense, despite that though his flesh was still as hard as stone.

Which is why he was so surprised that the man's knives drew blood as they slashed into his left arm, leaving two, half centimeter cuts in his muscled forearm. Not that Naruto paused to take this in as he easily ignored the slight twinge of pain and instead followed through with his attack. His claws sheering through the man's flak jacket and drawing blood as they tore through the upper layer of his flesh.

Unfortunately though he didn't disembowel the man like he had planned, as the Jounin had instead reacted quickly and leapt backward. His knives whistling through the air as he lengthened the chakra he was running through them and slashed at Naruto's extended arms.

Naruto however was warier this time, as he shifted down low before moving up, one of his hands moving up to grip the man's left hand, whilst he held the other flat like a spear blade and plunged it towards the Jounin's chest.

The Konoha Shinobi reacted quickly though as he shifted his hand back and turned it to the side, leaving a shallow cut on Naruto's palm as his hand clenched around both the Jounin's knife and hand. Not that that stopped Naruto from crushing his opponent's hand, shattering the man's bones against the hilt of his blade. His claws digging into the back of his hand causing even more damage as he did so.

The knife wielder cried out at that, his voice tinged with agony as he flinched backwards, trying to pull away from Naruto. Which actually saved his life as Naruto's hand clipped his shoulder, rending flesh and bone but not causing any fatal damage to his organ as was intended.

Letting go of the man, Naruto threw him backwards. A scowl on his face as he looked at the wound on his hand, seeing his blood for the first time in years. Just looking at it Naruto noted that the chakra blades would have certainly bisected a normal human, fortunately though Naruto's flesh was like iron, but still it was impressive that the man's technique had done as much as it had.

Snarling Naruto lunged forwards, his wounds already healing as he went to finish off the annoying Leaf Jounin. Any compassion he might have had for the residents of his parent's old home, vanishing as anger flashed through Naruto's mind.

As this was happening Kin had gone for the woman, her tanto already in hand as she shot forwards. Her lips pursed as she let out a high pitched whistle, casting a sound based genjutsu on her. Aiming to paralyze the other woman, which would leave her open so Kin could close in on her and dispose of her quickly.

Mid step however she was stopped by the branches of a tree that exploded grown from the ground beneath her. Not that this stopped her for long, as she instead flared her chakra and broke the genjutsu the other woman had cast on her, her eyes narrowed as she saw her target was the one that had cast the illusion, a powerful illusion at that.

The genjutsu wasn't just cast on her though, but on her two companions too. Which is what Kin noticed as she glanced around, noting that Naruto had already broken the genjutsu, his eyes flashing red as he activated his Doujutsu, breaking the genjutsu in an instant. The lucky bastard.

As for Deidara, he too had broken the genjutsu, after which he had then begun shaping his clay. A grin on his face as he began crafting a massive owl, one which would be big enough to carry all three of them. The blonde multitasking as he did so, also creating a flock of small swallow like birds at the same time, each one created from his explosive chakra infused clay.

Ignoring his two companions for a moment, Naruto was about to tear his attackers head off. Only for him to be stopped as he heard a loud crackling sound, like a thousand chirping birds, coming from behind.

Shifting around in response, Naruto easily avoided a sneak attack from another Leaf Shinobi. His now red eyes flashing as he used both his Doujutsu and sensory abilities to track his opponent, extending his senses as he did so and noticing that their little skirmish had started to draw even more attention from the Village's forces.

Leaping backwards, Naruto dodged another attack from his opponent, this one consisting of several dog like creatures made out of lightning. His amber eyes narrowing as he weaved through them, before he clashed with the other Shinobi. His clawed hands cleaving through his attacker's kunai, the man in question being a masked Shinobi with spiky grey hair, and his forehead protector covering one of his eyes. This was Kakashi Hatake, the Copy Ninja, an S-rank Shinobi Naruto recognised from a number of bounty posters.

Lashing out with his foot, Naruto seemingly broke the man's spine. Only for his opponent to turn into a shattered log, not that this surprised Naruto as he shifted around with a quick jab. Landing a punch on his opponent's real body this time, his punch breaking a few ribs and causing a bit of internal damage as he sent Kakashi crashing into a nearby building with an exclamation of shock.

"Deidara, now." Naruto said abruptly as he turned from his two, temporarily incapacitated foes. His gaze instead shifting to his two companions, noting as he did that Kin's opponent, the red eyed woman, was now clutching her stomach, her hands stained red with blood. A pained expression on her face as she attempted to hold off Kin, whilst also stopping herself from bleeding out.

Kin herself looking only slightly ruffled as she held her bloodied tanto in her right hand. A scowl on her face as she and her opponent dueled in a battle of both combat prowess and skill in genjutsu. Kin coming out the better of the two, her sound based genjutsu being far more difficult to counter than her opponent's more traditional techniques.

As for Deidara, he was currently standing atop a massive owl made of white clay. A grin on his face as his creation started flapping its mighty wings taking to the air.

"Kin." Naruto called out abruptly as he leapt up off the ground and landed on the back of the owl. Kin following after him, as she shot her opponent a slight smirk, before she jumped up, pushing off the side of a building and landing on the owl as she did so. Boarding her ride out of here just as it rose into the air, almost out of reach.

"And now the distraction." Deidara grinned as he looked down on where they had just been, noting that the grey haired man and the woman had both recovered enough to stare up at them, their knife wielding friend however was still down for the moment. Grinning wider as he saw this, Deidara then unleased his flock of clay swallows. More than a dozen of the little birds descending on the streets of the Village as he did so.

"Katsu!"

 **( - )**

 **AN: So what did you all think? I hope you all like it, and that you leave a comment or a review.**

 **Hopefully the next update shouldn't be long. Though I want to update my stories God of Fairies and Dead Man Walking first. The two of them being a priority for this week coming, along with my Naruto/ Fairy Tail story, An Old Man In A Young Man's Body V2.**

 **But anyway that's it, hope you enjoyed the chapter and look forward to the response.**

 **Thanks for reading.**

 **I'll see you all later.**

 **Seagate.**


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: So here is the next chapter I hope you all enjoy it, sorry it's a bit late but real life has been kicking my arse. To be honest I was working on a HP/DC and my other Naruto story, but was struggling so I did this to take my mind off of it. That being said I quite like this chapter and so hope you do to.**

 **Please leave a review and what not.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

 **( - )**

 **(Last Time)**

 _As for Deidara, he was currently standing atop a massive owl made of white clay. A grin on his face as his creation started flapping its mighty wings taking to the air._

 _"_ _Kin." Naruto called out abruptly as he leapt up off the ground and landed on the back of the owl. Kin following after him, as she shot her opponent a slight smirk, before she jumped up, pushing off the side of a building and landing on the owl as she did so. Boarding her ride out of here just as it rose into the air, almost out of reach._

 _"_ _And now the distraction." Deidara grinned as he looked down on where they had just been, noting that the grey haired man and the woman had both recovered enough to stare up at them, their knife wielding friend however was still down for the moment. Grinning wider as he saw this, Deidara then unleased his flock of clay swallows. More than a dozen of the little birds descending on the streets of the Village as he did so._

"Katsu!"

 **( - )**

 **Chapter 7**

 **( - )**

 **(In the air above the Village Hidden in the Leaves)**

Looking down on the Village Hidden in the Leaves, a vicious smile spread across Deidara's face as he watched his clay creations explode, each of them erupting in an explosive blast of varying sizes, depending on the amount of clay he used. Each of his constructs causing masses of damage and destruction, as the brought down buildings and collapsed bridges, scattering the Shinobi in the streets below as they dodged out of the way of the falling rubble, or moved to safeguard the village's civilian population.

Flying higher into the air on their clay bird, the group of three quickly rose far beyond the range of most techniques as they began to soar away, disappearing into the thicket blanket of clouds above them, even as the Shinobi Village below them erupted into chaos, as civilians shouted and screamed, fleeing from the imminent danger of collapsing buildings and explosion in terror.

Many of them no doubt coming to the conclusion that the village was being invaded, again, so soon after it had just begun to recover from the last invasion.

Unlike the civilians though, the Shinobi of the village reacted far differently, as within moments of the loud explosions the rooftops were swarming as hundreds of Shinobi took to them, some of them, those not on duty heading for the epicentre of the disruption so they could investigate the threat, and the face it head on if necessary.

Others however, those on duty, headed for the village walls, the Academy, the Hokage's tower, and other specific parts of the Village, securing all of the Village's most important assets in case this was an attack. All of them quickly slipping into their assigned roles as they followed protocol, acting like a single well-oiled machine, and showing the world just why the Hidden Leaf was considered the most powerful Shinobi Village.

"They're certainly an organized bunch aren't they?" Naruto spoke up idly from where he was crouched on the edge of their mount, his amber eyes absentmindedly scanning the Village as if he was looking for something. His gaze revealing no real concern despite the chaos they had just caused.

"It's a heavily militarized Shinobi Village, are you really that surprised?" Kin asked from where she was stood on the bird as it flew through the clouds, the dark haired girl pushing away her discomfort as the cold, wet air began to soak through her clothing as she instead looked down at the Village, her own gaze slightly more conflicted, "It's almost like watching an ant's nest that's just been disturbed isn't it?"

"Yes, but far more dangerous." Naruto muttered, as he looked down at his palm and the shallow cut that was still healing upon it. His amber eyes narrowing at the sight of the minor injury, Even as he watched as it began to rapidly heal, a scowl spreading across his face as he thought back to that pesky, bearded Jounin and how his wind enshrouded blades had manage to pierce his skin.

This happening despite his Sage Mode, which enhanced his durability, though not as much as his other attributes such as speed, strength and his senses. Still it made him durable enough that a simple blade couldn't breach his skin, which is why he had come to the conclusion that the Jounin from before had used the Wind Element to sharpen his blade. A technique Naruto had at least heard of, even if it was not one that he knew how to use personally.

"You're injured." Kin suddenly said as she tore her eyes away from the village below and instead took a step toward Naruto, a flash of concern passing through her eyes as she noticed the blood staining his hand.

"It's nothing." Naruto muttered, clenching his hand into a fist as he did so, and instead looking back down at the village, his gaze shifting away from the swiftly moving forces that were already securing the village and evacuating the affected areas, even as he watched, and instead to the surrounding forests, where he was just able to pick out two figures leaving the village, before they began running through the trees.

"Ha! You got injured by some treehugger? I thought you were supposed to be tough, yeah!" Deidara suddenly laugh obnoxiously as he looked over at Naruto, a manic grin on the blonde's face as he saw evidence that the seemingly indomitable and intimidating bounty hunter wasn't as invincible a she liked to pretend he was.

"Fuck off Deidara, the guy got lucky." Naruto replied as he wiped his hand on his Akatsuki robes, before showing Deidara and Kin his now fully healed up hand. "It won't happen again. Now it looks like they have taken the bait and gone to warn the Jinchuuriki of our presence. So stop waiting around follow them."

"Hn!" Deidara grunted in response, a bit disappointed with Naruto's dismissive reaction, before he instead pushing back his long blonde fringe, and used the binocular like device on his right eye to zoom in on the running Shinobi. "Yeah, it looks like you're plan worked."

"It almost sounds like you're disappointed." Kin said absentmindedly as she began to clean the blood off of her tanto, using Deidara's robes to do so.

"Oi, stop that." Deidara snapped as he saw what she was doing, pulling his robes out of her reach as he did so. "And fuck no I'm glad we finally get some action. Still it would have been funny to mock your boyfriend about the failure of his plan."

"He's not my boyfriend!" Kin shot back, her face going very red as she avoided looking at Naruto and instead glared at Deidara, her hand twitching as she resisted throwing her knife at the man.

"Just do your job and fly the bird." Naruto snapped, pushing down his slight disappointment at Kin's words as he instead glared at Deidara. "Or else I'll rip out your spine and flay you alive with it."

"You know, the more you threaten me, the less impact it has." Deidara replied petulantly, as he folded his arms and willed his clay construct onwards, his gaze now back on the running Shinobi below, content just to follow them for now, as they would hopefully lead them to right where the Jinchuuriki was.

"They're not threats Deidara, they're promises." Naruto shot back dryly as he got to his feet, patting Kin on the shoulder lightly as he walked to the front of the bird so he could keep an eye on the two Shinobi too, restraining himself from ordering the bird down so they could hunt them on foot like her preferred, after all the aerial advantage Deidara's constructs gave them was not something to just ignore.

It was as he did this, that he didn't notice how Kin relaxed slightly into his touch, her cheeks once again pinking as her dark eyes fixed on Naruto's broad back, a pang of longing passing through her, before she ruthlessly pushed it down, and instead focused on the matter at hand.

 **( - )**

 **(Outside of the Leaf Village)**

It was as chaos in the Leaf Village was unfolding, and the Shinobi forces were being unleashed, that both Shikamaru and Choji left the village.

The both of them running as fast as they could through the forests outside of the walled village, the pair of them soon taking to the trees, and leaping from branch to branch as they quickened their pace. The both of them moving as quickly as they could, eating up the distance as they ran in the opposite direction of the village, and the large black plumes of smoke that were rising from it.

Leading the duo was Shikamaru Nara, a tall, thin teen, with long dark hair tied up in a top knot, who usually had a disinterested look on his face, though now he had an expression of intense concentration on his face a she leapt from branch to branch. His childhood friend, and teammate, Choji Akamichi following along quickly after him as he did so.

The rotund, brown haired teen with face paint on his cheeks, almost the exact opposite of Shikamaru, in both character and appearance, hurrying along behind him, huffing and puffing as he tried to keep up. The pair of them both running as fast as they could from their home, though not because they were scared though, but because they needed to warn someone about what was coming.

With the someone being the third and final member of their Team, Team 10, another teen, and recent graduate from the Leaf's Shinobi Academy, Sora. A boy who despite being abrasive, crass and a bit of a jerk most of them was still their comrade, which meant that now he was in danger, it was up to them to warn him of what was coming and help him defend himself against it.

Already Asuma Sarutobi, their Jounin Sensei, and Kurenai Yuhi another Jounin Sensei for a different genin team, had apparently been rushed to the hospital with severe injuries due to the most recent attack on the Leaf Village. One which had apparently been orchestrated by a group of three powerful Shinobi, all three of whom had been looking for Sora.

With both Shikamaru and Choji having been present to witness the beginning of the attack, which had allowed them to see just how dangerous the three of them were if they could take down two Jounin and hold off another one. With them having heard of Asuma and Kurenai's fate as they left the village.

Which is of course why they were doing what they were, as since the Jounin present were either hospitalized or busy putting out fires, or evacuating civilians, it was up to the two of them to warn their comrade about his pursuers, as by the time things had settled down long enough for the now leaderless village to make sense of the situation, it might be too late.

Fortunately Sora was a loudmouth, and so it hadn't taken long for Shikamaru to find out that the obnoxious boy had left the village a couple of days before with Jiraiya of the Sannin, in order to find the older man's teammate, Tsunade Senju of the Sannin, both so she could become the next Hokage of the Leaf, and also use her legendary skills at healing to help those that were still injured from the invasion. With the previous Hokage, the Third, having fallen in battle against Orochimaru, slain in cold blood by his former student.

Despite that painful loss though, the Leaf Village, had for the most part fought off the invasion by both the Hidden Sand and Sound with limited casualties. Their forces had of course taken a hit, but as oppose to that hit being devastating, and crippling like it could potentially have been, it was negligible. And as soon as they got a new Hokage in the seat of power then the Hidden Leaf would begin recover, and quickly, which was good, considering the other Shinobi Village's, all of whom were probably watching the Leaf Village, searching for any weakness they could easily take advantage of.

That being said, despite having fought off the invasion, Shikamaru also knew that there would be certain people that would want revenge on their former ally, the Hidden Sand, despite the Leaf Village being slightly weakened. Fortunately though he also knew that most people didn't want to spark another war. Both sides had lost enough already; further conflict would just drag in the other nations and Shinobi Villages.

Fortunately, before all this had happened, Shikamaru, inquisitive as ever, had found out from his father that both Sora and Jiraiya were going to be starting their search for Tsunade, in Tanzaku Town, a small tourist community that was not too far from the Hidden Village. Which meant that the two of them should hopefully not be that hard to find, so they could be warned about the three Shinobi wearing black cloaks, with red clouds.

Of course that is not to say that Shikamaru didn't think Jiraiya could handle himself, despite being outnumbered, the older man was a legend after all, an S-rank Shinobi and one of the strangest in the Elemental Nations. But the element of surprise had killed many Shinobi before, and would continue to kill many after. After all sneak attacks and stealth were a Shinobi's most deadly tools, and considering there were three of them he might be facing, then Jiraiya could be in a lot of trouble.

However if Jiraiya knew about the threat beforehand, then half the battle was already won, as the Sannin could either retreat or make preparations to meet the threat head on if he had too. Either way with the information they were bringing, he would be prepared, and Sora would hopefully be safe. They could only hope their Sensei Asuma was as well, as they had not had the chance to check on the older man before they had left.

It was only two or so hours later that the two friends finally arrived at Tanzaku Town, the pair of them both quite tired after hightailing it there all the way. Despite that though they both continued as they set out to track down Sora, which should be pretty easy to find considering his loud, attention seeking personality, and his distinct appearance, what with the bandaged arm and blue hair.

Of course that was easier said than done, as the two of them soon found that Tanzuka Town was a lot more sprawling than the Leaf Village, With the Hidden Leaf being just a large, but with it also being designed around utility and defense, with distinct districts and large open streets. Tanzuka Town in comparison, was the complete opposite.

Still despite the difficulties the two quickly got down to track Sora down, asking anyone they could about people of their description, and where these people might be staying, after all someone had to know didn't they?

It was as the two were doing this that unnoticed by the both of them a large, clay bird began to descend from the sky, before it began circling in the darkening skies above the town, still partially concealed by the clouds.

 **( - )**

 **(With Naruto)**

Hovering above Tanzaku Town, doing lazy circles on the clay bird, Naruto, Kin and Deidara began to prepare for the confrontation ahead. The three of them having just arrived at the town after following a couple of young and impetuous Shinobi who had left the village soon after their attack.

"Where did those brats go?" Deidara asked as he controlled his clay construct, playing with the binocular like eyepiece on his right eye as he tried to find the brats they had followed here, the ones, due to the timing of their departure and their haste, that they had assumed had come to this innocuous town, to warn the Jinchuuriki of their pursuit.

"It doesn't matter, we don't need them anymore. Start flying around the town, and keep out of sight while I try and find the Jinchuuriki." Naruto replied brusquely as he crouched down and spread his senses, uncaring of fate or whereabouts of the Leaf Shinobi that had brought them here, as he instead tried or find their quarry.

With him using his Senjutsu enhanced sensory abilities to try and track down the enemy by the size of their Chakra reserves, with Naruto having gone with the assumption that the Jinchuuriki would have colossal reserves. That being said his sensory abilities, although far belong an average Shinobi's, were not perfect, hence why he need Deidara to ferry him around the town on the bird, so he could try and find his quarry from the air.

"Any luck?" Kin asked from beside him, her own dark eyes scanning the town below, as she tried to find the Leaf Shinobi from before. Not quite as quick to dismiss them as Naruto and Deidara had, after all they had come her for a reason, to warn the Jinchuuriki, and an unprepared foe was a lot easier to deal with than a prepared one.

"There is three large Chakra signatures in the town that I can sense." Naruto muttered, his brow furrowed as he assessed the three different signatures. "All of which are large enough to be a potential Jinchuuriki."

"Well shit, this is a bit of a fuck up isn't it?" Deidara spoke up mockingly. "So we've potentially found the Nine Tail Jinchuuriki, but he's got friends. I'm guessing they're the ones that were sent to protect him?"

"Quiet." Naruto grunted as he tried to focus in on the signatures, scowling as he tried to infer which one might be the Jinchuuriki. "The one we are looking for is over there, he's weaker than the other two, but his chakra has a small amount of the Tailed Beast's energy running through it." Naruto continued, pointing off in the direction of a small, dreary hotel on the edge of the town.

"And how do you know what a Tailed Beast's chakra feels like?" Deidara asked in amusement, cocking an eyebrow as he gave Naruto a mocking look.

"Are you really complaining?" Kin snapped back, shutting Deidara up as she did so, though internally she was also curious about the blonde's question, after all since when had he ever had any direct interaction with a Tailed Beast or a Jinchuuriki, and if he had, why didn't she know about it?

"I've met a Jinchuuriki before." Naruto replied bluntly as he stood up, his gaze panning the town below them once more, before he focused on Deidara, his now glowing red eyes as he activated his Doujutsu, daring the blonde to question his statement.

Something Deidara didn't bother doing as he instead just accepted the explanation and looked away from those cold, predatory eyes, after all he didn't know all that much about his stoic partner's history, and so couldn't say whether he was lying or not.

Kin however frowned as she immediately saw Naruto's answer as a deflection, not that she was about to call him out on it, not here anyway. She would be asking for some answers later though, as the two of them were supposed to be partners, and as such he should have clued her in on this, just as she had told him everything about her.

"The other one, the largest signature, is over near the town's bath houses." Naruto then continued as he stood up and gestured at a rather posh looking bath house on the other side of town, before he then pointed off towards the centre of the small town. "As for the third, that one is in a bar in the town centre."

"Is there any other Shinobi in the town?" Kin asked, her eyes now on Naruto, not at all bothered as his glowing red eyes turned on her, if anything she basked in the way he looked at her, though personally she did prefer his amber, more lupine eyes.

"I have trouble with the smaller chakra sources form this high up." Naruto replied grudgingly, but even if there are, I shouldn't think they would be all that concerning to the three of us.

Deidara nodded in agreement at that, before began to play with his telescopic eyeglass. "You need me to create a diversion? I could start dropping bombs in the town and draw some attention to the centre, cause a spectacle that'll draw some of the Jinchuuriki's protection away."

Naruto paused as he heard that, running though the benefits and negatives of such a tactic before he nodded. "Cause a little chaos, get the civilians out onto the streets and panicking. But try to restrain yourself, we don't want a blood bath."

"Minimal civilian casualties if possible." Kin then added on, playing with her sharp tanto as she did so. "This isn't a Shinobi Village we're messing with here,"

"Who cares?" Deidara replied irritably, somewhat surprised that the large, feral looking bounty hunter would care for people he didn't know, he genuinely didn't' seem like the type who would.

Naruto just shrugged at that, before glancing to Kin.

"I care, so in case you want a sudden, swift and painful change of gender, control yourself." Kin spoke up, a dark gleam in her eye as she eyed Deidara like he was a particularly loath some animal that needed putting out of its misery. Her mind momentarily flicking back to the Shinobi attack on her own home, and the deaths of those she held close to her heart. Attacking a Shinobi Village was one thing, they knew what they were getting into and were trained, but attack ordinary, untrained people just going about their lives that was an entirely different thing.

"Enough talk." Naruto said, placing a clawed hand gently on Kin's shoulder comfortingly as he could guess why she was so passionate about this, before he looked harshly at Deidara. "You have a job to do, don't fuck it up."

Deidara rolled his eyes at that, but still nodded. "Hn, you do the same yeah!"

"Kin and I will pursue the Jinchuuriki." Naruto then continued, before he ordered Deidara to drop them off in the town.

 **( - )**

 **(A few minutes later)**

It was a few minutes later that Deidara had smoothly, and quietly, brought his clay bird low enough to the ground, for both Naruto and Kin to safely leap off of it without incident, the two of them landing in a back alley, just behind the shabby hotel as they did so. Both of them on guard instantly as they eyed their surroundings, just in case of an ambush or any other trick a Shinobi might have set up to defend their prized weapon. Only for nothing to happen, as their arrival had apparently gone completely unnoticed.

After which Deidara had then gone off to make mischief, with no one paying attention to the on goings as the trio took advantage of the high buildings and busy, bustling nature of the tourist destination, and the darkening skies as afternoon quickly turned into evening, and the darkness of night began to descend on the thriving, tourist destination.

Looking up into the sky as Deidara vanished from sight, a slight scowl spread across Naruto's face. The blonde bomber was a wild card, one that was prone to rash decisions and bouts of petulant anger. The teen hadn't developed the cold ruthlessness of a hardened killer, instead he treated this whole thing like it was some big game.

Naruto however, although prone to bouts of anger and rashness on occasion himself, was for the most part different to Deidara. He was far more pragmatic in the way he approached things, weighing things up before acting. Sure when the was in the midst of a good fight he could sometimes be overcome by the throes of battle, as everything turned red and he could feel his heart pumping faster, as the bloodfury overcame him.

In those times he could act rashly, and act out in anger, but such occurrences were few and far between, as for the most part Naruto treated his hunts as just that, a hunt, one which required, speed, precision, commitment, and no hesitation.

Which is why for the most part Naruto was careful, he was also not excessive, as he didn't wantonly cause destruction for the sake of destruction like Deidara did, nor did he revel in death and carnage like Hidan, or in money like Kakuza, or his hate like Itahci Uchiha.

No, if anything he was more like both Kisame, in the way he exulted in the challenge of hunting down and facing a strong opponent, however unlike the blue skinned swordsman, he did not make a performance out of it. A fight after all was just that, a fight, it was swift and brutal, it required no flashy moves, or excessive attention seeking techniques.

It was with that thought in mind that Naruto sent Deidara one more look, faintly sensing his powerful chakra signature amongst the clouds, before he turned away. Hoping as he did so that Deidara didn't let his idiocy get the best of him, and also that the enemy didn't have anyone skilled at sensing chakra either, as although Naruto and Kin could mask their signature, Deidara could not. Plus Naruto knew that there were others out there who could do the same as him, or better in terms of sensing chakra. Which if that were the case, meant that their 'element of surprise' might just be a sham, and their opponents might be lying in wait for them. Preparing to turn the hunters, into the hunted.

"Come on." Naruto muttered to Kin, before he set off towards the hotel, trusting in his dark haired companion to follow along.

"Coming." Kin replied quietly, pausing momentarily to look up at the sky as she did so, before she turned and left. With the dark haired girl being just as concerned as Naruto about Deidara's lack of inhibition, and the likelihood that he could mess up their plan.

It was a few minutes later that the two of them entered the hotel through the window of an adjacent room. With Naruto entering the hotel proper, his bare feet padding silently along the threadbare carpeted floors, his senses flared as he sniffed the air, trying to lock onto the Jinchuuriki's scent, even as he activated his Doujutsu. His amber eyes turning red as he began to look through the surrounding walls, searching for his quarry.

A part of him looking forward to fighting a Jinchuuriki, if it put up a fight, and another part of him curious about just how this person came to hold the Nine Tail's chakra within him, and whether this person would make a suitable replacement for Naruto himself in Pain's 'Grand Plan'.

Whilst Naruto was doing this, Kin had run up one of the walls using her chakra, her footsteps silent as she crept across the rooftops, her tanto held at the ready, as her dark eyes flicked about her surroundings. The dark haired girl pressing herself against the roof tiles as she prepared to back Naruto up at any moment, if necessary.

Though for the moment her attention was also partly on Deidara as she saw him flying own the town, no doubt creating his explosive constructs. With Kin's eyes locking on the figure as he prepared unleash hell, hoping as she did, that he did at least exercise some restraint.

This was a concern that Naruto himself also shared, though likely for a different reason, as despite their apparent confidence, Naruto, and likely Kin too, knew how dangerous their current mission was, as they were only a short distance from the Hidden Leaf Village, and any prolonged conflict would bring both the wrath of the Hidden Leaf and the scorn of their elders in Akatsuki upon their heads.

On top of which the proximity of the two powerful chakra signatures was somewhat concerning, though that concern would hopefully be mitigated by Deidara's distraction, which should also allow Naruto to quickly go in and capture the Jinchuuriki.

Ideally Naruto would have liked to investigate the other two powerful chakra signatures, in case one, or both of them had a bounty on their heads, or they were a particularly challenging opponent.

Unfortunately though the mission came first, besides once they found out he took the Jinchuuriki he was sure they would come for him, so who knows, sometime in the future he could be facing off with them anyway.

Shaking those thoughts away, Naruto instead focused on the task at hand, already aware as he did so that Kin was prowling along the rooftops overhead. With that thought in mind, Naruto continued padding along the corridor of the sleazy hotel, before he came to a halt in front of a plain wooden door, one which he knew the Nine Tail's Jinchuuriki was hiding behind.

Moments later he calmly knocked on the door, knowing as he did so that despite his outward calm, internally he was a raging tumult of emotions. After all if this Leaf genin was really the Nine Tail's Jinchuuriki, or a suitable substitute, then that meant that Naruto was off the hook, and that he would no longer be one of the Akatsuki's potential targets, not that they knew that, yet.

And to keep it hidden all he had to do was continue to maintain his Sage Mode, and not use the Nine Tail's chakra, something he had never used before, in front of an Akatsuki member, and he was home free. After which he could continue living his life how he wanted, whether that be that both Kin and himself remaining in the Akatsuki tracking down and defeating powerful opponents and doing S-rank missions for a lot of money, or whether it be that they leave and do something else, whatever that may be.

Either way it meant that he could strike out on his own, without the worry of the group of S-rank Shinobi working out what he was and pursuing Kin and himself, then again he was pretty sure they wouldn't be all that keen if he were to leave the group, so the point may be moot.

Pushing those thoughts away for now, Naruto instead focused on the task at hand, as it was only a few moments after he had knocked on the door that it opened and a short, blue haired kid with a bandaged arm revealed himself, a confused expression on his face and, a Leaf forehead protector proudly displayed upon his forehead.

Tilting his head at the sight of the boy, Naruto's amber eyes turned red as he activated his Doujutsu. To the average passerby, the boy was just an average kid, or at least an average kid with Shinobi training. But to Naruto, with both his eyes and his sensory abilities, the boy's chakra was a raging sea of raw energy, most of it his own, but with trace amounts of the Nine Tail's energy within him, with these trace amounts somehow enhancing the boy's natural reserves, both in terms of size and potency.

Focusing on the source of the Nine Tail's chakra, Naruto found the seal on the Jinchuuriki's stomach, one which contained a chakra exactly like his own, though noticeably less than the amount Naruto knew he held. Then again that might be because of the type of seal he had, or the source of the Nine Tails chakra, there were likely factors involved that he couldn't comprehended, either way the boy was the Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tails, even if only a pseudo one, and that was good enough for Naruto.

Grinning at this, Naruto showed off his sharpened canines as he tilted his head to one side, his eyes returning to amber as he stopped channeling chakra to them. The reason for this being the sudden explosions that began erupting in town behind him, as Deidara released his chakra heavy blasts of exploding clay, blowing up buildings and scattering the crowds, even as the sound of screaming and panicking civilians started to fill the air.

"Who the hell are you?" The boy before him snapped, his loud and obnoxious voice carrying quite far in the almost empty hallway. Not that Naruto was really bothered by this, as although he would likely not be getting the epic battle he was looking forward too, a job was a job, and he didn't like failing.

With that said Naruto went to step forward and sucker punch the target, with a single Sage Mode enhanced blow. It would be an easy knock out, and would likely cause little more than a bit of internal bruising and a few broken ribs, no life threatening injuries, but ones which would hopefully disable him and stop him from calling for help.

Only as he was doing this, he found couldn't move, as somehow the shadows within the hall had thickened, before suddenly binding around his body, completely immobilizing his arms and legs over the course of a few moments.

"Shadow Possession Technique. Complete." An unfamiliar voice announced behind Naruto, catching his attention as he once again flared chakra to his eyes and activated his Doujutsu.

"Seriously?" Naruto asked as he wrenched his body around, flaring his chakra and breaking the shadows grip on him with ease as he turned to face the two young teens facing off against him. With one of them being a skinny kid with small to mid-reserves, which already looked to be low, this one being the was using the shadows as Naruto could see them chakra infused shadows linking to him, Whilst behind him his chubby friend was already flaring his chakra and preparing an attack.

Widening his eyes when he saw Naruto had already broken his technique, Shikamaru could do little more than look on horror, even as Choji unleashed his own attack. The two of them having tracked Sora down quite easily, the two of them only needing to ask a couple of people to narrow down where they were staying, and then a few enquiries to the hotel reception to find out which room. Both of them arriving just in time to meet one of the pursuers already confronting Sora.

"Did you really think this would work?" Naruto continued on incredulously, as he wrenched his way through the boy's shadows as he tried to use them yet again, his red eyes fixed on the fat boy as he curled up into a ball and shot towards him, like a runaway boulder.

Snarling at that, Naruto lashed out with his hand, striking the human boulder rushing towards him in the side, and sending him hurtling into the wall. After which he then twisted and dodged the Jinchuuriki's attack from behind, gripping the boy's arm instead and breaking it with a single twist, before he then wrenched it and flung him headfirst into a nearby wall.

"How did you think this was going to go? That you'd try and ambush me, then what, that you'd somehow defeat me?" Naruto continued to ask, almost angry about how stupid this attack was. What did a pair of genin think they could actually take him on? It was embarrassing.

Back tracking at that, Shikamaru's eyes widened in horror as Naruto walked towards him, his claws gleaming in the dim light of the hall and his eyes glowing red, leaving light trails through the air as he advance on the younger teen.

"Shikamaru!" Choji shouted desperately, in a pained voice, before he exploded towards Naruto one again, his fist growing ten times larger as he lashed out with a single, direct, forceful punch.

"Choji don't!" Shikamaru cried out, panicking now, as he final realised the difference in skill between their opponent and them, a difference that no amount of planning and preparations could make up for.

Despite that though Shikamaru didn't give up as he extend his shadows once more, burning through the last of his chakra as he tried to immobilize his opponent long enough for Choji to land a blow, a blow that would hopefully incapacitate him, if only temporarily, but long enough so the three of them could run away and find some real help..

Scowling at this Naruto once again broke the shadows grip, as he instead lunged forward, dodging beneath the clumsy, fat genin's strike, before lashing out and taking advantage of the opening. His clawed hand moving upwards as Naruto tore through the boy's stomach, partially disemboweling him, an action that caused a spray of blood to drench the silver haired Sage. Only for Naruto to then flick the boy off his hand with a look of disgust, sending the young teen smashing into a nearby wall, where he landed in a heap on the ground, still and unmoving, a pool of blood rapidly expanding around him.

"Choji!" Sora snarled as he pushed himself to his feet, his eyes now red and his broken arm quickly healing as he began to draw on the Nine Tail's chakra.

"Choji!" Shikamaru also shouted desperately, his eyes wide and filled with horror as he looked from his still and bloodied best friend, to his red eyed opponent in terror and fury. "What did yo-" Shikamaru began to say, his voice pitching slightly as panic, anger and fear overtook all rationality, only to be halted in mid-sentence when he felt a heavy blow to the back of his head, his world going dark as he fell to the ground moments later.

"Kin." Naruto said with a nod, as he looked at the dark haired girl, who was absentmindedly twirling her tanto in her hand as she stood over the still and unresponsive body of the Leaf genin.

"I can't let you have all the fun now can I?" Kin replied with a slight smile, before she nodded to a point just over Naruto's shoulder. "Don't forget the Jinchuuriki by the way."

Smiling slightly at that, Naruto rolled his eyes before he turned and watched as the Jinchuuriki ran at him, his previously bandaged right arm now revealed, showing off a bestial arm with a set of claws extending from it. A loud scream of fury leaving the boy's mouth as he bull rushed Naruto, his clawed hand trailing behind him, tearing deep furrows in the carpeted floor.

Tilting his head as he saw this, Naruto could almost taste the Jinchuuriki's fury as wisps of orange chakra began to flow off his body, even as his claws began to glow a light green colour, a similar technique to the one the Jounin he had defeated earlier had used.

Watching as the boy charged him, Naruto waited until the last moment, before he reacted, his eyes flashing red momentarily as he avoid the boy's clawed had as it slashed at him, before he twisted and lashed out with a closed fist. Aiming for a straight knock out, after all they needed the boy alive.

"Die!" Sora snarled as he spun on his heel and lunged for Naruto again, only to find himself facing a clenched fist, one which struck him in the side of the head, and smashed him off his feet and into a nearby wall, his mind spinning and his consciousness slowly slipping away as blood began to drip down one side of his face.

"I thought you were supposed to be watching my back?" Naruto said calmly as he looked back at Kin, his gaze moving over the three downed genin as he did so.

"I was, but these fuckers must have got into the building before us. Besides they're just genin, what trouble could they actually give you?" Kin replied dismissively, as she eyed the three teens before looking down at the Jinchuuriki, her gaze softening slightly. "He's so young."

Naruto frowned at that, before pausing. "You're too soft hearted."

"Or maybe you're to hardhearted." Kin shot back at him.

Naruto cocked an eyebrow at that, before he leant down and grabbed the all but unconscious Jinchuuriki by the collar. "I held back didn't I? I didn't kill them all like I could have done?"

"No just a bit of friendly maiming is all." Kin replied dryly.

"They trained to be Shinobi, it's an occupational hazard." Naruto said, as he began to leave the hotel, dragging the barely conscious Sora along behind him, even as he heard the explosions in the distance continue to sound off, though now the screams had faded, telling Naruto that Deidara was doing little more than demolition work now.

Kin rolled her eyes at that, but didn't reply, partially because she couldn't refute that point.

"Now come on, we've lingered here too long as is. Deidara can only keep them distracted for so long." Naruto said as he continued down the corridor, increasing his pace as he heard the explosions in the distance beginning to fade.

Kin nodded at that, before running after him, casting one last look back at the two genin, before she shook her head and continued down the hallway after her partner.

 **( - )**

 **(Moments later)**

A few moments later, after the two Akatsuki members disappeared down the corridor, taking Sora with them, Shikamaru opened his eyes.

Letting out a slight cry of pain, the boy then began to crawl along the floor, the barely conscious Shikamaru slowly dragging himself over to where his friend Choji had fallen, his breathing ragged and his head pounding as he did so.

He hadn't planned on the Akatsuki being this ridiculously powerful. The plan he had thought of was supposed to work, he was supposed to immobilize the older teen before he got to Sora, after which Choji's Human Boulder would then connect with the man and take him out. Following form that they would link up with Sora and then take the remaining members of the trio down one by one, using team work to accomplish the feat, after all wasn't that what Asuma had been training them to do.

It was supposed to be simple, but effective.

But instead the attack had failed, and their efforts were shown to be paltry and futile as the older teen crushed them with no apparent effort. Choji had been crippled in moments, as too had Sora when the boy had realised what had happened, and then Shikamaru had then been taken out, with the last thing he remembered being a strike to the back of the head. Either by the older teen's clone, or by one of his compatriots. Either way their plan had failed and they had been decimated.

Despite that though he wasn't about to give up, Sora was a teammate, and dare he say it, a friend, and Choji was the closest thing he had to a brother. Shikamaru would not allow Akatsuki to win this easily, first he would help Choji, if the boy still lived, and then he would go after Sora.

With that though in mind, Shikamaru struggled to his feet, his vision blurring as his head continued throb, and his knees almost buckling as he felt the warm feeling of blood running down form the back of his head. He knew he had no real hope of beating one of these three Shinobi now, as he was, but as unlike him as it was, he would still try.

Shaking his head Shikamaru took one step towards Choji, his eyes flickering over the large pool of blood surrounding him, and the great bloody tear in his gut, before he collapsed again, his vision blurring as he desperately tried to cling onto consciousness, before he looked up and found himself looking at a pig...

"Hold still." A soft and unfamiliar voice then said, as he looked up and found himself looking at a pale skin woman, with short black hair and dark eyes. An intense expression on her face as she gently cradled him in her arms, her face pinching in concern as she looked form him to Choji. "Help is here."

 **( - )**

 **AN: So that's the chapter what do you think? It ended up being a lot longer than I thought it would be, but even so it's done and the next one has already been started. I assume people can infer what will be happening in it and that things aren't going to be all that simple.**

 **So yeah, other than that I hope you enjoyed, sorry it's been a while, but I've been very busy in real life.**

 **For those who have questions over Naruto's Sage Mode, I will say now that it is different to the Toad's Sage Mode, focusing more on offensive enhancements, then defensive ones. With the Wolves's Sage Mode having different strengths to the Toad's Sage mode, which I hope came across in the way I've been describing it. I think I covered this before in the story, but it has been a while and I can't remember.**

 **Naruto's Doujutsu for those who don't know has penetrative vision like the Byakugan, Analytical memorisation and the ability to cast genjutsus like the Sharingan, the ability to block other Doujutsu and final the ability to see lifeforces. Sonyeha it's it's pretty versatile. Look up Ranmaru's Doujutsu for more information.**

 **Other than that I hope you all review and if you have any questions etc. feel free to PM me and I'll get back to you as soon as I can.**

 **Also feel free to check out my other stories if you fancy, there may be something you like.**

 **Thanks for reading and I'll see you later.**

 **Seagate.**


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